BREEDER
by gorblimey2
Summary: Whiteboard Awards Winner for Best Novel, Alternate Universe and O/C character. A woman, from the future, accidently finds herself living in Princeton. She's not like anyone House has ever met. He doesn't know how, but he gets stuck with her. FUNNY,SAD, M
1. Chapter 1

**©Brogan 2007**

**BREEDER**

**Chapter 1**

**ACROSS A CROWDED ROOM**

I'm a breeder. One of the lucky few who have been blessed with the ability to keep the human race alive. Less than five percent of all humans walking the earth are breeders now. The rest are clones or sterile.

I met one of my clones by accident. It's rare, but occasionally it does happen. The governors try to space the clones out geographically so that interaction between the clones and the breeder are statistically low. From her dropped jaw and wide eyes, I realized that my clone was more shocked than I was by the encounter.

I had missed my transport appointment and was forced to spend the evening in Los Angeles. I was sitting in a popular gossip bar having a late night snack when she came in with some friends, laughing and talking non-stop. I didn't want to scare her, so I tried to remain as calm and quiet as I could. I have to admit that I kept sneaking glances of her as she ordered her drink. I know it sounds snobbish, but even though she was clearly younger, I think I'm better looking. At least, better dressed. Despite my efforts to stay incognito, one of her friends spotted me. It was the brunette friend with the eyes too close together, that started staring at me. Then her boney little finger came up and pointed in my direction. I saw my clone stare and turn white. I smiled and waved. She collapsed back into the chair and one of her friends held her hand as she recovered. I got the bill, paid it and tried to walk out, but she ran after me.

She pulled on my arm frantically, "Are you a clone or the breeder?

I knew I was going to hurt her feelings, but she seemed to sincerely want to know. "Breeder, I'm the breeder." I said looking down at my new Tarlin-Garfield shoes with the cushion air-electro soles.

I didn't have to look at her face, I could tell by her posture that she was deflated by the answer. The last thing a clone wants to do is meet their breeder. It's a reminder that they won't be contributing to the gene pool and that they're simply here as fillers.

"Oh." There was a pause and I thought I should leave, but she pointed to her friends, "Please join us. We're all clones. I'm sure they'd like to ask you questions. Would you mind?"

I had another three hours before I could try the transport as a standby, so I shrugged my shoulders and joined her table of friends. The bar was geared for talking. The lights weren't too low, the music wasn't too loud and the value units were just right. It was the perfect place to gossip with your friends.

They stared at my clone, waiting for her to tell them. "She's the breeder."

"Oh!" They said collectively. Then the table went quiet.

Many of my friends were clones, so I tended to get along with them. In fact, some of my _best_ friends were clones. I must admit it was easier for me to be around breeders, because we understood each other. We were afforded more perks than the clones which meant that the clones often envied us because of the perks. One of the perks was that we were given the best jobs, the cream of the careers. In fact, I rarely told anyone what I did for a living, it tended to make people go nuts with questions.

"Does it hurt to be a breeder?" my clone asked cautiously.

Why clones always asked that, I don't know. I suspected that there was some crazy rumor going around that we got all the perks because it hurt so much to be a breeder. "No, we're given Platazine when they collect the ova. It's all rather pleasant."

They all nodded.

"How often do you donate?" The boney fingered clone leaned forward for the answer to her question.

"Once every three months." I answered.

"Have you ever seen a man?" My clone asked..

I had to smile, "Yes, I've seen several. I've done research in one of the colonies."

They were all impressed. It was one thing to see a man, it was even more impressive to have worked in a colony of men. I knew what was coming next.

"Is it true that they smell and fight with each other?"

I nodded. "They definitely smell like the bottom of a dirty clothes hamper and they seem to always be pushing each other around or starting fights. The male clones are the worse." I said this, but had no real understanding of what a dirty clothes hamper smelled like, it was just a phrase of speech we all used to describe an unpleasant smell. We recycled our clothes immediately when they were dirty. That is, if we wore clothes. Most of the time we went without them.

My clone asked me, "What's your name?"

"123265."

"Wow. 123265! That's really impressive."

I had to agree, I had a fairly high designation and my name was a dead give away. "I'm part of TOP."

That received a huge nod of approval and admiration, as I knew it would. One of the clones, another brunette with a fairly intelligent look, turned to me, "Is it true people slip?"

I thought about it. I remembered the first time someone slipped after I had joined TOP; it scared the hell out of all of us.

TOP is the Time Observation Project. It was the offspring of the original program, TAP, Time Alteration Project. When time travel and observation was first discovered, we were naive and thought that we could go back and change it all without any thought to what we were really doing. We wanted to save the human race from the devastation that _The Scourge _would bring. But the more we sent people back to correct the problem, the more we altered our own history and made it worse. We had thought that we could control the disease after it had already spread, but we soon realized that we were causing it to recombine and mutate into so many variants that we couldn't begin to find a vaccine for it. We were taking the wrong approach. It was during the second phase, when we developed the Time Gate, Phase II, that we learned we didn't have to actually participate in the time stream to observe it.

We discovered that time was like a river and that we could either slip into it and possibly alter it in ways that were detrimental to the human race or observe it on the side, or as we referred to it, "the banks." Once we realized that we could travel around the time zone we wanted to observe without participating, we didn't send anyone into the time stream itself, unless absolutely necessary. Observation from the banks was more constricting. It meant we had to take more trips back. But it was worth it to prevent alterations in history that we couldn't control. These days, Surveyors only slipped into time when something went wrong with our time gate or there was a power surge. This happened an average of one out of 2,311 observations from the banks.

We were trying to find the vector, the very start of _The Scourge_. It had taken three lifetimes and we were still tracing the vector back in time. We were hoping that once we had traced it to the original vector, we could then send someone back into the time stream itself, destroy the vector and wipe the disease out of our history.

I was both a Geneticist and an Epidemiologist, which made me an ideal candidate for TOP. It didn't hurt that my biological mother had also been a TAP researcher and a brilliant one at that. I had never met her, she had been dead over five decades when I was conceived, but I heard a lot about her and received a holo-tablet that had her biography on it.

"On occasion we slip, but not very often. Not as often as the media would like you to believe." I said.

"Have you ever slipped?" My clone asked.

"No, and I've made over 1,000 observation surveys. So you see, it's very rare that it happens.'

"Have you ever seen it happen?" the brunette asked.

I didn't like sharing that information, but I hated lying even worse, "Yes. I've seen it happen, twice."

"Did they live?"

"One did." I said truthfully. "The other fell into the time stream on a rocky shore when they slipped." I thought about Jasper. She was beautiful, funny and my friend. When the power surge hit last year, she was on the banks of time in New England. She slipped, her body entering the time stream naked and at a height of over 50 feet. She fell straight onto the rocky New England shore, her body broken into pieces on the rocks below a seaside cliff. It had sobered us all up and from then on out we Surveyors weren't so cocky.

They all winced and groaned. 'What happened to the other?"

"We receive a liquid tracing substance before each survey. It lasts seventy-two hours. If we slip in, we can be traced and pulled out. It may take some time, but usually it's done within 45 hours of the slip."

"But I heard that some people come back years older?" My clone was more inquisitive than the others.

"That's true. That's because they're living in the time line they slipped into and it may be years that they live in that time zone before we find them, but it's only minutes, hours or days to us."

They all shook their heads as if it was hard to understand. "Sounds complicated. What do they do when they slip?"

"Generally, there's a period of confusion and some memory problems. They have a hard time connecting the fact that they've slipped with what's going on. We often find that in the time zone they've been living, they end up in psychiatric institutions for the insane. The people around them think that they're delusional because they keep talking about disease, the decimation of the human race and time travel. No one believes them. Eventually, they acclimate and adapt, but by then they've already been labeled crazy."

There was a chuckle from the group. I looked down at my chrono and realized that I still had two hours to kill. I ordered another drink and prepared to answer more questions.

"Have you found where _The Scourge_ started?"

"No, not yet. We've gone back a long way though. I've been as far back as 2086! We have some evidence that it may have started even before then, somewhere on the east coast. I'm scheduled to make a survey of Princeton, New Jersey in the early 21st century. We feel like we're getting close so we've decided to try and hit a time period we believe is _before_ the first vector of the original strain. Or at least we _think_ is a time period before the original vector."

They were quiet. I excused myself to go to the restroom. When I got up, I turned and saw them all staring at me as I crossed the floor. I knew that they would be discussing me, I had one of the most interesting jobs on the planet coupled with the fact that I was a breeder. It made for excellent conversation. I smiled, knowing that my clone would receive an immediate boost in status after I left because everyone would know that her breeder was high up on the food chain!

I returned to find them all locked in conversation and unaware that I was close by. I heard one of them tell my clone, "You ask her."

"Why me?"

"Because she's your breeder."

"Ask me what?" I took my chair at the table.

The clones all looked at each other. I knew what they wanted to ask. "You want to know why you can't donate– right?"

They all nodded.

"To be honest, we don't know why clones and most people born from ova are sterile. As you know, when _The Scourge_ hit, we lost 79 percent of the female population and 98 percent of the male population. Out of the remaining female population, only 6 percent currently produce ova. No clone has produced any viable ova, which means you can't donate. Out of the male population left, only 5 percent produce any sperm. And of that 5percent, only 2 percent have a _pre-The Scourge _sperm level. Most of the males that can produce sperm, produce very few. The men who can produce sperm are electrically stimulated every day to produce semen for cultivation and harvesting of sperm. Unfortunately, once we fertilize a donor egg from a breeder with one of these sperms, only 35 percent of the female eggs make it to birth and less than 3 percent of the males survive. The only way we can sustain a viable population to run the current facilities is to clone from the breeders."

"Can't they do something genetically to make the males produce more sperm?"

"We did genetically alter them so that their testes would be larger and produce more semen, but that hasn't produced any additional sperm. We've developed and tried all types of vaccinations, but the disease mutates and recombines around the vaccine. This disease has had over 1,000 different variants, more than any other disease mankind has known. We still have people working on a vaccine or cure, but they're the most frustrated group of scientist you every want to meet."

One of the clones spoke up, "I saw a male once. He was traveling with a breeder in San Diego. She had him on a leash thank God, so we were able to get close to him. He had hair on his face!"

I nodded, "Yes, they grow hair on their face, their butts, their legs, their abdomens and just about everywhere."

There was a collective, "Ewwww."

I nodded again, "Yeah, they're pretty disgusting. They tend to look at your breasts when you talk to them. Some of the women who work the colonies have started to wear clothing during the summer just to keep the males from getting agitated."

"That must be hot." the little blonde said.

"Very. Especially in the Bisbee Copper colony. I can't imagine wearing clothing in 100 ° F weather. It would be so sticky."

I asked the bartender for another drink and she gave me the thumbs up to let me know it was coming. I waited to see if they had any other questions. My clone had one.

"Have you ever been in the Great Hall of Records?"

"Many times."

They all looked at each other. I doubt that they had ever met anyone who had been given access and probably would never meet anyone again. "Everyone in TOP has access because we have to do homework on the period we are observing. That includes geography, topography, biology, fashion, social nuances, literature, music, anything that may help us decipher and analyze what we are surveying."

"What's it like?" My clone leaned forward. Everyone was curious about the Hall of Records.

"It's incredible. It's filled with media from as far back as scrolls from the Roman Empire. From Livia and Mary Magdelene's time. I didn't tell them that there were books that talked about relationships between a man and a woman. They wouldn't believe me anyway. The history of sexual attraction and reproduction had been erased to protect everyone. Even I had limited access to those records. I was only allowed to read accounts of men and women getting married and having children. I could have read one rather explicit book, or at least that's what the librarian said, "Carnal Knowledge," but she advised me against it.

"It's crude and disgusting what they do to each other."

I took her advice.

There had been a dark period, just after the third pandemic wave of _The Scourge _swept the earth. People were committing suicide because they missed their spouses or partners. It was decided that future generations would be protected from this emotional devastation. As a result, all literature or media that referred to love or coupling between a woman and a man was banned. Occasionally you would hear of someone turning up with a contraband copy of a Shakespeare play or a Hemingway novel, but it was rare. These works had not been completely destroyed. There were still the originals or copies in the Hall of Records for special purposes.

I answered questions about my life and the TOP project for the next hour and then called the server over to bring my bill. My clone stopped me and said that they would pay for it, it was the least they could do. I thanked them all, grabbed me overnight bag and made my way to a portal to get to the transport. I was praying I could get a standby seat that someone had reserved and then cancelled. There was a good chance, there were lots of transports between Los Angeles and Philadelphia, where I lived. People frequently booked and then caught a different transport. I was in luck that night, there were more than a dozen cancellations and I was second on the list. I got home, fed my dog, Katmandu and went to bed. It was good to be home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Bored and Lonely in Princeton**

James Wilson was sitting in his office working on oncology referrals when he looked up and saw the tall, scruffy profile of his friend, Gregory House, standing on the balcony they shared. He sighed. House had been more than a nuisance this winter. Being cooped up more than usual because of the uncharacteristic bad winter, House had cabin fever. Wilson figured this was the only thing that could explain why a grown man would stand on a balcony in 23° F weather. He could see that the snow was still covering the bannisters of the balcony and the sky was that winter gray with a slight pink tinge from the morning sun. It had to be freezing outside.

Wilson knew if he acknowledged House, he'd probably be drawn into some drama and right now, Wilson needed to get his work done. He was going on vacation in a week and he had to catch up before he went. Wilson ignored House until he heard a bang on the door to the balcony. House had climbed the small wall that separated his balcony from House's and was now making a racket on the glass with his cane.

Wilson shook his head and got up to let him in. He opened the door, shaking his head and muttering curses to himself. He looked up at his friend, "Alright, I'll bite. Why the need to expose yourself to frostbite? Where's your coat?"

House rubbed his hands and blew on them as he collapsed onto the sofa and laid back so that he could see Wilson at the desk. "I'm bored. I just wanted to see how long I could last outside before my balls retreated all the way. In case you're wondering, it was five minutes, fifteen seconds."

Wilson exhaled. "If you're bored, go bother your team or find something that will drive Cuddy crazy. Better yet, why not actually go down and work in the clinic like you're suppose to?"

"Bite your tongue."

"House, I need to get this done. Can't we have this conversation at Trophy's tonight?"

"Remind me, where are you going on vacation?"

"Cozumel."

"You're going alone?"

He was exasperated, "You know that I'm going with my cousin, Sam. Now leave."

"Sam. The cousin who was arrested for possesion? And you're going out of the country with him? Have you ever wondered what life would have been like if you had been given enough oxygen at birth?"

"He's not dealing drugs anymore. It's been five years since he was arrested. Now leave me alone and go find your balls."

House stood up and walked slowly to the door. He turned, "Maybe I'll join you in Cozumel. I'm bored."

"You keep saying that and it's too late to join us. I tried to get you to go, but you kept moaning about the heat, the bugs and the tourists."

House opened the door and leaned on the door jamb, "Well, you know I'd be a better traveling companion. If you stand next to Sam you can hear the ocean."

"Get out!"

"I'm going, I'm going." House and his cane clicked down the hall at a fast clip. House remembered that today was Reuben day in the cafeteria. He could get a Reuben, fries and a coke for $2.99. The best deal of the week.

The cafeteria was swamped. Whenever it was too cold to go outside, people tended to make their way downstairs to the cafeteria for their lunch. House pushed into the line in front of a group of interns and behind a group of orthopedic surgeons. He heard some grumbling behind him from the interns.

He looked at them with scorn, "Keep talking, someday you'll say something intelligent."

One of the cockier interns spoke up, "Yeah, well your buddies the orthopods in front of you just cut in line too." He pointed to the group of interns, "We're human, we need nourishment too."

House looked at the intern's lab coat. It read _Dr. Harper_. _How appropriate._ "Nourishment for what? You're an intern, you're about as useless as the Pope's testicles."

The kid's mouth dropped open and his friends all giggled. House turned around and smiled at the server behind the counter. He went to open his mouth, but the server simply put the Reuben, fries and coke on top of the counter for him. He shrugged and took the tray to the front of the line to pay for it. He looked around to see if there was anyone he could con into buying him lunch, but was disappointed to see that there was no one. He paid and took a seat. He ate in silence, looking up on occasion to watch people coming and going. When he was done, he wiped his mouth and sat back in his chair. God, he was bored.

Lisa Cuddy was pissed. The heel on her brand new Jimmy Choos had broken in the rain grate outside the hospital. She had to resort to a pair of sneakers in her desk drawer she used for when she worked out. She had to admit they were comfortable and it made it quicker for tracking down the elusive Gregory House.

"House! Where have you been? You're late for clinic duty. You're supervising the interns today."

"What am I suppose to do with a group of snot nosed know-it-nots?"

"They diagnose and propose treatment, you either approve or disapprove. You know the drill."

House not only knew the drill, but knew it was his turn to perform it. He hated babysitting, it drove him nuts. He whimpered, "I've got a patient coming in this afternoon."

"No you don't, I just got a call. He died. Get your butt down to clinic now." She turned and stormed out to go raise havoc with a doctor who had been harassing the nurses. House took a deep breath and then blew it out. He got up slowly, putting the tray on the conveyor and starting his short journey to clinic. When he arrived he looked out in the waiting room, heard the coughs, sniffles and sneezes and realized he was in for a snooze-fest. The only interesting person in the waiting room was hidden under a large blanket and flanked by two college students wrapped in hospital blankets. They all seemed to be dripping wet.

House nodded in direction of the blanketed blob, "Who's that?"

The nurse shrugged and said, "I don't know, the kids with her don't know, she doesn't know. She almost drowned."

He craned to look, "It's a woman under the blankets? Why isn't she in emergency?"

"The kids brought her here. I don't think they knew what to do with her."

One of the wet kids came up to the desk. "Excuse me," he interrupted. When the nurse turned to him he said, "Look, we just saw her land in the water. We don't even know her. My friend and I have been waiting for over an hour and we're going to be late for class. Uh, we're going to go." He turned and caught up with his friend who was already trying to leave the hospital.

House yelled after him, "Hey, Gallahad."

The college student stopped, his head and shoulders fell. He turned to look at House. House walked over, stood towering over him and looked him up and down. "I don't blame you for getting the hell out of Dodge, but just tell me what happened."

The student was joined by his friend, "Come on Kyle, we're late."

"Wait a minute, this guy wants to know what happened."

The friend shook his head, "Why bother, no one believes us. The cops didn't, the nurse didn't, why would this guy?"

House frowned out of frustration, "For God's sakes, just tell me."

"We were at Lake Carnegie with the guys from Delta Omega Phi. Jeff and I were suppose to swim from the dock to a rowboat they had in the water as part of our initiation." He paused, realizing that Princeton had banned hazing, but he could see House didn't care so he continued, "First we heard a whooosh and then a splash about twenty feet in front of us. We didn't know what we were seeing and then I realized it was a naked woman that had fallen from the sky into the lake. Well, it's freezing out there and she wasn't moving so Jeff and I swam over and grabbed her. We got her to the boat and then paddled to shore. One of the guys grabbed that bedspread she's wrapped in out of their car. She was breathing and looking at us, but not saying anything. It was like she was in shock or something. Well, everyone ran except for Jeff and me. The police came and took a report and then left. We got her into my car and drove her here. " He looked to his buddy for confirmation. "That's it."

"You're right." House looked the kid up and down, "I don't believe you. We're going to do a rape kit on her and she better be clean. This whole thing sounds like a kegger party that got out of control."

"Look mister, I swear we didn't hurt her, we saved her life."

House started to believe the kid, he looked scared and desperate that someone believe him. He had a ring of honesty to him. He waved him away, "Yeah, you can go. Get out of here. But remember, the cops have your names."

The kids started to take off. House yelled to stop them, "Hey!" They turned. "How long were you in the water before your balls pulled all the way up?"

The kids gave House a look of horror and then ran, almost slipping on the ice as they ran down the pavement outside. He smirked and then went back to the charge desk. The woman was no longer sitting the waiting room.

"Where's the human popsicle?" he asked Nurse Kelton.

"She was just sent into room 6, Dr. Urich is in with her. You know the cute intern with the big ...well, the cute one."

Wilson was on his way out the door to do some last minute clothes shopping for his vacation. He passed through the clinic and saw House. "House, using my cell phone to call Amsterdam to do research on your vacation plans was not funny. I've got two hundred dollars worth of calls to Madam X's House of Fun, Amsterdam Gentleman's Club and Fun by the Hour. You know most people don't plan their vacations around the location of brothels."

"I don't need to go to Amsterdam. I just discovered it's raining naked women over at Carnegie Lake. Care to grab an umbrella and go with me? If they're breasts are too small we can always throw them back."

"The bill will be on your desk. I need your check by tomorrow."

House went to room 6 and, without knocking, opened the door. He took a deep breath. There was a shivering woman, maybe 5'3", wet blonde hair and gray eyes that would have been more interesting if the color hadn't been so plain. She had a pair of surgical scissors and was brandishing them at Dr. Urich, a nice looking, but very young, male intern. He had his hands up as if he was trying to calm the woman. The blanket she had been wrapped in was open in the front, revealing a bluish white naked body. She didn't appear to be modest, there was no attempt to cover up, but she was scared and angry.

"Look, I just need to hook you up to the monitor to see if you're okay. I won't hurt you." Urich was dancing around like a prize fighter.

Her nose and mouth both pulled back in distaste, "But...you're a man! How dare you even think you can touch me or talk to me! I didn't give you permission and I wouldn't give you permission." She put her free hand on her hip, "For God's sake, don't you have any manners? In case you hadn't noticed _I'm a woman_!"

The intern looked sheepishly at House for help. House just sniggered and leaned quietly on his cane. This was amusing.

"Dr. House, should I give her a sedative?"

"I don't know, should you?"

"She seems rather agitated...maybe some valium? My mom takes Valium and it calms her."

"I'm sure your mother needs it."

The woman turned her attention to House, "Now I know you two are crazy. Men can't be doctors. Where's the Mater?"

House chuckled, "The Mater?" He shook his head. "What planet are you from?"

"Earth, you idiot. What's your identification? I'm reporting you for insubordination."

"Get in line." House replied.

She walked over, pulled her shoulders back and grabbed House's genitals. House jumped back with a yelp, "Your testicles are too small to be a breeder, who gave permission to have interaction with women?"

House took his cane and pushed her away from him. "Excuse me, next time you want to touch my balls, make sure it's with your tongue."

The intern grabbed the phone, "I think we need a psych evaluation."

House took his cane and pushed down on the telephone button to stop the call from going through, "Not yet. She's just fallen into a freezing lake. I suggest you admit her overnight for observation. She's still blue, get her temperature up to normal and maybe then she'll return to her senses. Get an MRI while you're at it." He stopped and looked at her, "That is, if she ever had any in the first place."

"But Dr. House, she had to be looney to go swimming in the first place. It's the middle of winter."

"Maybe, or maybe someone pushed her in. Admit her and, if she gives you problems, have a female doctor see her."

"Yoo-hoo!" She said, waving her hand at them, "I'm standing right here and I can hear you."

He looked at her, shook his head and said, "You're a few clowns short of a circus, aren't you?"

"Excuse me? What's a circus? You mean a roundabout?"

He shook his head, "How about, you're all foam, no beer?"

"I'm not following you. What are you talking about?"

"Damn girl, get the wax out of your ears." House laughed.

She put a finger in her ear and felt for wax. She looked at him, frustrated, "You're mistaken, I don't have wax in my ears."

House turned towards the door his eyes opened wide in disbelief. As he opened it he turned to the intern, "Let me see her MRI after you get it back. And get that psych evaluation after all."


	3. Chapter 3 PART 1, SLIP SLIPPING AWAY

**CHAPTER 3**

**SLIP, SLIPPING AWAY**

My eyes and face contorted as I put the glass down, "Oh God, when are they going to make this cherry flavored?"

Mable laughed, "Don't hold your breath 123265." She continued to calibrate the gate. "We've never gone back and surveyed this far in the past. It's over two centuries ago. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"This is probably a dead end, but I did the research and found that the birth ratio in the Princeton area of boys to girls declined to 47 to 53 births per hundred in 2015. At the same time, they had an unknown disease kill off half the squirrel population. I think it's worth a look, but I want to go back to 2010 to get a head start on the disease. If I don't see signs of _The Scourge_ in 2010, I can go to 2015 the next time.

"You do know that they still drove machines that used gasoline back then?"

I nodded, I had done some homework on the era, but not that much since I didn't think I would be observing humans this time around. "I doubt I'll see any. I'm programed to observe squirrel and other rodent carcasses around Lake Carnegie. I don't think I'll go any further than that for now. If I see signs that the squirrels have _The Scourge_, I'll come back and get permission to dive in and get one."

"I have you calibrated for February 2010 as requested. It's winter, so look for the squirrels in tree knots and ground holes, they're not too active in the winter." she said, still looking at the vid screen in front of her.

I laughed at her, "Mabel! I know where to look for squirrels and rats. I've been doing it for fifteen years now."

She nodded, "I'm sorry 123265. I've had a lot of new trainees the last few weeks."

I smiled at her. "Oh, just in case of problems, what's the password on the account?"

"32787." Mable said. "It's an internet account. Did they teach you how to use the internet?"

"Yeah, but it was a long time ago."

"The user name is _Scourge_, the password is 32787 and the account name is your mother's name. It was set up by her when she worked on TAP."

I nodded and then took off my robe. The gate room was kept at 60°F in order to keep the Gate from surging and slipping a surveyor. Even Mabel wore clothes in the Gate room to keep warm. I had goose bumps flash over my flesh as I shivered. I stepped into the blue-green waves of light and felt myself being swept back in time. I always had a sick feeling at first, especially after drinking the _tag_, the liquid that allows the Gatekeeper to find you if you slip into the time stream. I knew that once I reached my destination my stomach would settle down.

It was taking longer than usual because I was going so far back. I was a little excited, more so than usual. The furthest I had gone back before was 2086, and that was to the Gobi Desert. This would be really interesting, it was just possible I might see humans in the environment, something that rarely happens on my surveys. Most of the surveys tend to be in forests, National Parks, mountains or areas where it is easy to find wildlife to observe. On occasion, we'll hear about an urban rat population dying and we get to observe them in the urban environment, but the furthest back that we found urban rats dying in any significant numbers that we could possibly link to _The_ _Scurge_ was 2130.

My heart was beating fast, but there was little I could do. While we traveled we were frozen in stasis, unable to move even if we wanted to move. It usually took at least a few minutes for us to come out of stasis when we reached our destination, but that didn't pose a problem since we weren't interfering with the time stream.

I felt something that I hadn't felt before, like an electrical impulse. I could feel it in my heart. My thoughts started to become jumbled and I was trying to remember where I was going and why, but all I could think about was pudding, chocolate pudding. I had an image of swimming in chocolate pudding. Then somewhere in my mind I was screaming in my head and falling, falling out of the sky. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. I was slipping, slipping into a large body of water.

_It's cold, damn, it's really cold. I can't move and I'm upside down in water._ _Where am I? What am I doing here? Why can't I move? I hear voices. I can't think straight, what am I suppose to do now? I hear male voices. Am I in a colony? Why are there men here? What is going on? I need to move, I need to swim, I need to get some air or I'll drown!_

"She's just laying there."

"Her head's down in the water. I think she's dead."

"Try and get her into the boat. Now! She'll go into hyperthermia if you don't get her out of the water Kyle."

"Yeah, yeah, okay."

_What's going on? Thank God, my head is up, my head is up! What is he doing? A man is putting his mouth on mine and blowing. Why is he doing that? How disgusting! Oh God, I can move, I can move now. I've got to stop him._

"For God's sake, get off of me. Who gave you permission to do that?" I pushed him as hard as I could, "Oh, it's so cold! It's...so...colddddd."

The male at the far end of the boat spoke,"Get her into shore, they've got a blanket for her."

"Lady, what were you doing swimming naked in the lake in February?" the male named Kyle asked.

"I wasn't swimming you idiot, I was drowning."

"But it looked like you fell from the sky. What happened?"

"Are you joking? You think I'm going to carry on a conversation with a man? Especially one your age? What colony are we in?"

"Colony? We're in Princeton lady and this is Lake Carnegie you just dived into."

"Princeton has a male colony now? When did they open it? Why did they open it?" I was shivering, my body was a bright blue. We reached the shore and another male came over with a blanket and wrapped it around me. "What is wrong with all of you? I'm a woman. The breasts should be the clue. _You're touching a woman_!."

They just stared at each other. Another man in a uniform came running down to the edge of the water where they were standing around me as I sat shivering on the grass.

"Alright, what's going on here?" he asked. I noticed he had a large gadget strapped into a black belt. I thought it might be a weapon known as a gun. But I wasn't sure. Most guns had been destroyed as a result of the International Female Independence and Male Dominance Act of 2178. The only guns in existence that I knew of were in the hands of the females who patrolled the edges of male colonies to prevent the men from escaping. Any male discovered beyond the border without an authorized female escort was killed on site. We had learned a long time ago that once a male gets the taste of freedom, they just keep trying to escape, you can't tame them again. It was decided that we would just put them down, rather than leash or contain them. It was also a great deterrent to the other males. The guns used by the guards didn't use gunpowder or bullets. They were strictly a beam that disrupted cells at the quark level. It was quick and painless.

The one who had pulled me into the boat held up his hands, "Hey, we didn't do anything but pull her out of the water. She was drowning."

"Lady, did these boys touch you?"

"Yes, they touched me." I answered truthfully.

The taller one backed away from me, "Whoa...yeah we touched her, but just to get her into the boat."

The male in the uniform looked at me, "Is that right? Did they do anything else?"

"Yes, they spoke to me without my permission."

For some reason everyone stopped talking and looked at me and then each other.

The male in the uniform wiggled his eyebrows and tapped his head with a finger, "I think you guys better take her to Princeton Plainsboro to get checked out...if you know what I mean."

They apparently did, because they pushed me towards a machine with doors. When we got in they played with the controls and we actually traveled through the streets in it. The inside of it had warm air and I started to feel my whole body tingle and burn like it was thawing out. There was music blaring out of the front of the machine, singing about male domination and death.

We arrived and they took me into a building that said, "Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital." It was a very antiquated hospital filled with equipment that was best left to a museum. They were still using computers with keyboards and, when you walked in there were no scanners to scan and direct you to the specialty that you needed. Instead, you talked to a nurse at a desk.

The nurse, a tall female, asked, "Name and address?"

"123265."

"Is that your address?" the Nurse asked.

"No. It's my identification."

She seemed annoyed, "Yeah, right. Okay 123...here, fill this out and have a seat."

I filled it out the best I could. I didn't know what a phone number was or an insurance number. I handed it back to the nurse and she pointed to an area and instructed me to sit down. I was forced to wait with the males who had brought me to the hospital. There were also other males in the same room. Some were touching women, but at least the women were dressed. I assumed that the women could always recycle their clothes and take a shower later to get the stench off. It was all very confusing and no one could explain to me why such an antiquated hospital still existed and, more importantly, why I had been brought to it!

My kidnappers had disappeared out the door after talking to a tall male with a deep scowl. They called me into the examination room by yelling, "Jane Doe." I didn't respond until someone finally pointed at me and yelled, "Hey you, room 6."

I went in and saw a young man in a lab coat. He was obviously part of a practical joke, because the lab coat obviously belonged to a Dr. Urich, the name written on the coat. I hoped the woman who owned the lab coat would be able to recycle the coat before having to wear it. The kid looked at some papers and then started towards me with a black piece of cloth attached to a rubber hose which in turn was attached to a machine. At first I couldn't believe he was doing it, but I was right. He was going to touch me! The men in this colony were very brazen. I saw a tray with a drawer under it. I pulled the drawer out and saw the scissors. I grabbed the scissors and waved them at the male.

"Look, I just need to hook you up to the monitor to see if you're okay. I won't hurt you." he said to me as I lunged at him. As he said this, the door opened and _another male_ entered! He was tall, very tall for a male. It was the scowled faced male I had seen in the waiting area. He looked smug and intelligent, at least intelligent for a male. He was old, with graying hair and eyes the color of blue you see on delft china in the museums. His demeanor reminded me of that species of Great Apes that were long extinct, the silver backed ones. He was both amused and curious. I was confused. I felt myself drawn to him. _Me, drawn to a male!_ You can understand why I was worried. My whole world felt upside down.

This male, this tall one was very abrasive and impudent. I was sure he must have large balls, indicating genetic alteration for breeding, but he didn't. His balls were about the size of a Kiwi fruit and the look on his face when I grabbed them was both shock and amusement. He was incredibly odd for a male and well spoken. His vocabulary was intelligent and, I hate to admit, witty. The younger male didn't have a clue that the tall one was making fun of him.

After the tall male left, I was taken by two female nurses to a roller chair and wheeled into a room with a large machine that made a pounding sound when I was inside. I am pretty sure it was the sound of the magnets inside of it being activated. In my classes I had seen holographs of them. They were known as Magnetic Resonance Imaging machines, the precursor of our Tao Scanner, although much more primitive.

The young male followed me back to a room with a bed where a female nurse helped me into a gown and put me under the covers. They brought me the flimsiest sandals made out of a felt material and card board. The nurse, the one the Silverback later referred to as Nurse Hatchet, (although her tag said Brenda Mason, R.N.) presented me with the slippers and a tub full of odds and ends as if I had just been awarded a prize. There was a wrapped brush that said, "Toothbrush", toothpaste, a plastic cup, plastic pitcher, powder, lotion, shampoo and something called "conditioner." She showed me how to turn on the machine with flat moving pictures at the end of my bed. The young male and the nurse both left.

I had a horrible taste in my mouth, probably from the lake water. I wanted to remove the taste so I took out the toothbrush and opened it up. I had seen someone in 2099 use one and was familiar with them. The toothbrush was an opaque purple with white bristles and a blue line down the middle or the bristles. I looked for the button or switch, but didn't see one so I assumed it must be voice activated. "On!" I said. "On." I said again. But nothing happened. I felt so frustrated. I heard someone laughing. It was the Silverback male.

"What are you laughing at?" I inquired.

He was holding his stomach, but his laugh was stilted, as if laughing was an uncomfortable thing for him. "I just can't imagine what you think you're doing." He walked over, took the toothbrush from me, grabbed the toothpaste and put some on the brush and handed it back to me.

I looked up at him and was struck by how blue his eyes were, "Well? Now what do I do? It won't work!"

His brow and eyes narrowed like I was a curiosity. He said very slowly as if I was retarded, "You put it in your mouth and brush up and down over your teeth, gums and tongue."

"No joking." I tried to give him a look of disgust, "Yes, but why isn't it vibrating?"

"Because it's a manual toothbrush..._you_ have to do the work." He looked at me sideways, "I can see manual work isn't your forte, is it? What do you do for a living? Live off of Daddy's money?"

_Money? Yes, value units. I remember. Money is their equivalent of value units. _I was shocked, "My father has money?"

He raised his eyebrows and put a hand up to his check, "You're asking me?"

I was frustrated, "_You just said my father had money!_" I shook my head. "What is your identification number and where is the Mater?"

He blew air from his cheeks and looked almost as frustrated as I felt, "Mater, what is a Mater? You keep asking for the Mater."

I was getting angry at his cheekiness. The fact that he even spoke to me without my permission was irritating enough. But his tone was condescending. I spoke slowly, as if he was the one that was retarded, "The Mater is the female in charge of the male colony. Obviously, this is a male colony. I want to talk to the Mater."

He smiled to himself, "Oh, excuse me. I had forgotten what a Mater was. I'll get her for you."

He left. The young male came back and told me that, so far, they hadn't found anything wrong with me. He had ordered a psych evaluation, but it would be about an hour before they could get down to see me. I had no clue who was coming or why, but since I was waiting for the Mater, I really didn't care how long it took.

The Silverback showed up with a woman about my size, dark hair and eyes almost as blue as his. She had sharp features and dressed in clothes although she exposed most of her breasts.

"Hello, I'm Lisa Cuddy, Dean of Medicine."

"Are you the Mater of the Colony?"

She looked at the Silverback with suspicion and then at me again, "The what?"

"Mater? The supervisor of this place?"

She seemed to understand that, "Yes, I'm the supervisor of this hospital."

I sat up straight, "I have a complaint. Your males are very cheeky. They have spoken to me without my permission on numerous occasions, they touched me without my permission and _that one _has been very impudent and impolite. He talks to me like I'm an incompetent fool and won't identify himself. I would like for them to be punished and re-indoctrinated. If you don't do it soon, they're going to have to be put down."

I must have opened her eyes to what was going on because she looked horrified. She grabbed the Silverback and pulled him out of the room. She was talking quickly at him. He nodded his head, said something and then she came back inside the room.

"I'm very glad we had this discussion. It is my understanding that Dr. House," she pointed at the Silverback, "is not your doctor. Doctor Urich is treating you. Dr. House is simply insuring that your stay here is comfortable. Dr. Urich has apparently arranged for some tests, an evaluation. The doctors from that department will be down soon and then we can figure out where to go from there. I'm sorry if they've been inappropriate, I'll talk to them." She smiled and nodded at me.

"Dr. Urich?. I haven't met a doctor Urich. I met a young male wearing her lab coat. But she hasn't shown up." I was very confused. I nodded towards the Silverback, "His identification is Dr. House?"

"Dr. Gregory House." She said with frustration in her voice, "If you want to file a complaint against him, I'll give you the information on where to do so."

"I've told _you_, his Mater, that should be enough. I would like an apology from him though. He has been very rude."

The entire time the Dean and I were speaking, the Silverback was sucking on some plastic stuck inside a paper cup. I had the impression he was observing us like I would observe a Holovid of my favorite heroine story. I felt like I was his entertainment.

"I'm afraid that you'll be waiting a long time for that apology. He is very difficult to control." She said.

He nodded in agreement.

"Then he should be put down." I tried to get comfortable, my head was pounding, "Mater Cuddy, you need to get control over these males or you'll find they'll just take over and we'll have to exterminate all of them."

She nodded in agreement, "I couldn't agree with you more." She looked back at Gregory House. She looked down at some papers at the bottom of the bed, "Now, I see you have no insurance on your admission form. It also fails to list your name. Can I have your name?"

"I'm 123265. And I don't know what insurance is. I may have it, but I'm not sure what we would call it where I'm from."

"Insurance is issued by a company that pays for your services here at the hospital. Do you have a job? Insurance sometimes comes with a job."

"I'm a Surveyor for TOP. I don't think I have insurance."

"So, you're an engineer?" she asked enthusiastically.

"No, I'm a Geneticist, but not a Genetic Engineer. My sub-specialty is Epidemiology, which, as you can see, makes me ideal to be a Surveyor."

She looked at me with her mouth pursed together and her brow furred. She clearly missed the connection between my background and being a Surveyor. I quickly determined that she had to be the most incompetent Mater I had ever met.

"Well, do you have any money to pay your bill with?" she asked politely, but I could tell she was a little upset with me.

I thought hard. I was still hazy from the recent events. I knew I must have slipped. But, I wasn't sure where I was or what I was doing. I remembered that if someone asked for money, then I had probably slipped pre-2100 when we went to the International Value system worldwide. Some of us have more value units than others, depending on our rank and status. Since I was a Breeder and a Surveyor with a Doctorate in Genetics and Epidemiology, I was high up on the value rank. I had a lot of units assigned to my value each quarter. I simply had to walk in to a restaurant or store, they would scan my right eye, and value units would be deducted from my account. Money was a thing of the past.

_If they are using money, I'm suppose to do something...what is it? I have money somewhere...but, I can't remember where or how to get it. It has something to do with my mother's name._

"I think I have money, but right now I can't remember where it is. It's somewhere under the name Marie Callahan."

She wrote something down. "Well, Marie. If you remember where your money is, let us know. Do you remember where you live?"

"I have a flat on the third stratosphere between Philadelphia and New York, Unit 4-998, Stratos Venuto."

The Mater looked at Gregory House and he shrugged. "Well, we're going to have to have the social service workers find you a place to stay."

"Hey, I've already seen her naked; she can stay with me." Gregory House said with a wide, inviting grin.

The Mater turned to him and gave him a fierce look, but it didn't faze him. He was brazenly insolent. She turned back to me, "Well, once again, if you need anything, just let Dr. Urich know or you can contact me. I hope you get well soon." She turned to leave.

I yelled after her, "Am I sick? That young male said I was healthy."

The Silverback sighed, "Ah, but what do young males know?"

He had a point.


	4. Chapter 3 Part 2Slip Slipping Away

Chapter 3 part 2

The Mater and Gregory House both left. I waited and waited, but no one came. I decided that I had waited long enough. I was hungry and needed to find nourishment and a place to stay until the gatekeeper could pull me out. I was at a clear disadvantage. I had slipped into a time zone that I hadn't researched much. I normally observe wildlife and not humans. I knew I had slipped into the early part of the 21st century, but I couldn't remember the date the Gatekeeper had set or if I was even in that time zone.

The social settings and physical surroundings were very foreign and primitive to me, which meant I had gone back further than usual. I looked outside and it was definitely winter. I couldn't go out in the gown so I got up and went down the hall to a room filled with linens. I found some strange socks that were elastic the entire way up the calves. I put them on and then found some cotton pants and matching tops that had PPTH stenciled in black across the blue. I pulled the blanket off of the bed and slipped on the cardboard slippers. There was a matching blue bandana that I put on for warmth too. I was ready to go outside.

I went down the stairs and through several halls. I found myself inside a structure with the transportation machines. It had words and stripes painted on the floor. Several of the words simply said, "Subcompact." I guess the transports were called, Subcompacts." I walked around and around in a circle that spiraled down. Occasionally a subcompact would stop behind me and sound a loud noise. The occupant would wave at me and I would wave back. The people in this time zone were odd. They would wave and then, as they went by they'd tell me to, "Get out of the way."

I walked outside and found that it was getting dark, the sun was setting. It was very, very cold. I wrapped the blanket around my neck and body as best I could. The shoes and socks didn't afford much protection, but it was the best I had. I walked a few blocks when a Subcompact pulled up and the window rolled down. A woman that I recognized as Nurse Hatchet leaned over.

"Can I give you a lift?" She asked.

"A lift?" I knew she couldn't mean that she wanted to give me an elevator so I tried to look as pleasant as possible.

"Can I give you a ride somewhere?"

"Oh! In your subcompact?" I asked.

"Well, actually, this is a SUV. Can I give you a ride somewhere, it's really cold and you're going to get sick the way you're dressed."

I managed to open the door and I climbed into the seat. The interior was warm and I was grateful to be out of the cold.

"Well, buckle up. Where can I drop you?"

I tried to figure out how to buckle up. I saw two straps and noticed how they fit around her shoulder and waist. _This SUV must really go fast if you have to be strapped into it. The forces on it when you move, must be incredible._

I was still thinking when she said again, "Well, uh, any thoughts on where you want to go?"

"I don't really know."

"Well, do you have a place to stay?"

I smiled. I had an answer to that, "Yes, Gregory House said I could stay with him because he saw me naked."

She pulled her head back and frowned. She clearly didn't like Gregory House. "Are you sure you want me to take you to his apartment?"

"Yes, I will be staying with him." I said it with conviction.

She shook her head in disapproval, but then she fiddled with a stick between us and the SUV went forward. Within minutes she was pulling up in front of a brick building that looked like one of those we preserved in Philadelphia as shrines. "He's in 221B, that one there."

I could see that there was a step and a door marked 221B. "Thank you very much for the lift in the SUV. I enjoyed it."

"You know, you're going to have to return those clothes and the blanket to PPTH?"

"Yes, when I get inside, I'll take them off and give them to Gregory House to take back for me. Thank you." I got out and walked back to the stoop and and opened the door. The door led to three other doors, one marked 221B. I tried the door but it was locked. I could hear music. I knocked on the door and within a minute the door opened and he stood next to it staring at me.

I pushed him away from the door and walked inside. "I'm here."

He looked a little stunned, "What ...how did you get here?"

"Nurse Ratchet brought me by lift in her SUV."

He scrunched up his face as if I had just spoken in tongues. I dismissed him. It didn't matter if he understood or not. I began walking through the rooms taking off the blanket, top, pants and slippers. I turned to him and saw that, like most males, he was staring at my breasts.

I pointed to the clothes on the floor, "You can take those back to the hospital tomorrow. I need nourishment."

He put his hand up to his head and continued to stare at my body and not at my face. He shook his head violently as if he was clearing his mind and then looked up at me.

"What are you doing here?"

"You told Mater Cuddy I could come and stay with you because you had seen me naked."

He chuckled and tried to say something, but hesitated. "You know, I can't talk to you with your headlights glaring at me." He walked back to another room and came out. "Put these on." He handed me a cotton shirt with an elastic collar that said, "Alcohol and Calculus don't mix. Never Drink and Derive." He also handed me some short pants made of a lightweight cotton that had a large slit in the front. I put them on too.

I looked down at the silly articles of clothing that now adorned by body, "I was warm enough. I don't need to wear these."

"I need for you to wear them. Now, once again, why are you here?" he asked.

"I needed a place to stay and you told the Dean, Mater Cuddy, that I could stay with you."

"It was a joke. _A joke!_ You do know what a joke is?" He stood there in the same type of shirt I had on only his had the name of some place in New Orleans. He also had on Levis. We still wore Levis in my time zone. But we wore them when we did hard labor or if we went hiking, things like that. I had noticed that people commonly wore them around Princeton.

"The only joke I know is the one I'm looking at." I gave him a glare. "Now get me some nourishment!" I was tired of his insolence.

He chuckled once, chuckled again and then he started to laugh. He tried to talk, but had a hard time, "You're serious! You think I'm going to drop everything and find you something to eat! Don't you?"

I was becoming very agitated and confused. Men just weren't suppose to laugh at women. This was very strange. I was tired, I was hungry and I wanted desperately to go home. I ran over to him and kneed him in the groin. "You need behavior modification." He doubled over and grabbed his little balls.

"Jesus H. Christ! That's it, get out. _Out!_"

I sat down and crossed my arms, "I'm not leaving! Now get me some food." I had a headache from not eating. _Get me some food!"_ I screamed. Then, I don't know why, I just started screaming out of frustration. He looked nervous, like having a screaming woman in his place was a bad thing.

"Hey, hey...calm down. I'll show you the kitchen and you can find your own nourishment. Then I'll take you to where you can stay."

I stopped screaming. There was a knock on the door. Gregory House opened it. There were two men in those same blue uniforms as I had seen before and I'm pretty sure they were carrying guns.

"Your neighbor flagged us down and said that she heard a woman screaming from inside here."

Gregory House opened the door so that the officers could see me, "It was her." He said solemnly.

"Ma'am? Are you okay? Is this man hurting you?"

I was surprised, men tended to be the ones to control other men in Princeton. It made no sense. "He won't feed me. I need food, I haven't eaten in a long time. He promised me that I could stay here, but he won't feed me."

Gregory House rolled his eyes, "I'm going to feed her right now. She just doesn't like to wait, she's..." He put a finger up to his head and twirled it next to his temple and whistled.

"Ohhhhh." the two uniformed men said in tandem. "Well, good luck. Feed her before we get any more phone calls."

"Yeah." Gregory House closed the door and turned to look at me. He wasn't happy. He shook his head and with the use of his cane, made his way into the next room.


	5. Chapter 4 Part 1 Just Keep On Your Side

**Chapter 4**

**Just Stay On Your Side**

House made his way into the kitchen and stopped. "Hey, you...1234567...come here and you can make yourself a sandwich."

She walked into the kitchen, her arms still crossed against her chest. Her voice went soft and she seemed genuinely curious, "What's a sandwich?"

"Ahggg. Here." He threw the loaf of bread on the butcher's table. He opened the refrigerator and took out the peanut butter and a jar of jam. He opened the drawer and pulled out a butter knife. He threw them on the table and said, "There, make yourself a sandwich, I've got to take a dump."

"A dump?"

He closed his eyes and shook his head. "Never mind."

She watched him grab a magazine and a pen and walk to the back of the apartment. She grabbed the peanut jar and tried to pull the top off. She finally read the top which said, twist with an arrow that went clockwise. She twisted and squealed with delight when the lid came off. She did the same to the jam. She grabbed the knife and stuck it in, pulled some of the jam out, licked the knife and stuck it in for more. She grabbed all the food and took it out to the couch.

House came out to the living room to find a prone woman with smears of jam and peanut butter on her face and hands. There were two half eaten slices of bread on the coffee table. She was asleep. He put the jars away and then got a cloth to clean the peanut butter off of the leather couch.

"Hey 7654321..." He yanked on her shoulder. She opened her eyes and sat up quickly.

"What? Where am...oh, it's you."

"Go back to the bathroom and wash your hands and face." He nodded towards the back, "Oh, and uh, you may not want to breath through your nose when you go in there."

She came out a few minutes later her nose wrinkled. "Did that smell come out of you?"

"Yep, all me." He smiled at her.

"Ahhggg, men. You really are disgusting." She sat back down.

"Oh no, don't get too comfortable. I got those out for you, now put them over what you're wearing. He pointed to an old, paint splattered pair of sweat pants and a faded sweat shirt. She put them on and frowned up at him.

"The pants are falling down." she said.

"Hmm. Just a second." He went and got some twine and wrapped it around her, tied it up and stepped back. "There. Now where are those slippers you wore over?"

She pointed in the hall. He went and got them, and threw the slippers on the floor and she stepped into them. He put on his pea coat.

"Are we going somewhere?" she asked.

"Yep, I'm taking you to a shelter."

She looked up at him with a look of innocense and naivete that made him wince.. "Shelter? Is it warm? Do they need value units?"

"No, you can stay there and make lots of friends and not need a single value unit. They'll even give you nourishment three times a day. You'll love it. Women run it, well, mostly women run it. Come on, get in the car and you'll have a nice warm place to sleep in just a few minutes."

"I don't know what to say. For a man this is very nice of you. You gave me clothes, food and now you're going to take me to a warm place to sleep. I guess I should thank you."

He looked away from her and stammered, "Uh...uh...you don't have to, I'd do it for anybody, even my parents." He grabbed his keys. "Get your blanket, it's cold out there."

They got into the car and she said, "This isn't an SUV, is it a subcompact?"

"No, it's a sedan."

She nodded. She said nothing the rest of the way and House began to feel guilty. She really was nutty, but then again, her vocabulary and grammar were excellent. She seemed educated, but ignorant at the same time. He pulled up next to the stairs that led to the St. Vincent de Paul shelter. The lights were on inside the building and, since it was only 7:00 pm, people were still milling around outside. Well, House had to admit, there were actually _a lot _of homeless guys were sitting around. He pointed up the steps.

"Go up those steps and down the sidewalk. See the double doors there? That's the entrance. Go in there and tell them you need a place to sleep."

She nodded enthusiastically and opened the door. She hated to say it, the word got stuck, "Th...thanks again for everything. I'll get you your clothes back later."

"Nah, you can keep them." He turned and faced towards the traffic, waiting to hear the door close so he could take off.

The door closed and he signaled to move into traffic. He pulled out and waited with everyone at the light. He looked into the rear view mirror and saw a guy with his arm around her, trying to talk and she was trying to squirm out of his hold.

"Come on light, change." He wanted to take off as fast as he could. He was pretty sure she would be okay, the area was patrolled regularly. The light changed and he felt a burden lift. He took one last look in the mirror and cursed. He turned around for a better view and saw the guy pushing her down the sidewalk, away from the shelter.

"Crap." There was a honk of a horn and he flipped off the guy who honked. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going.'

House started to drive home assuring himself that she could take care of herself and that she wasn't his responsibility. But he found himself taking a right at the next light and then doubling back around. He drove by the shelter, but couldn't see her. He pulled up and asked some of the guys sitting around.

"Hey, that guy, the dark haired guy, where did he take the blonde?"

One of the older African-American guys spoke up, "That's Levonne. He's got him a stable of girls over at the Carter hotel on Georgetown Road."

House cursed under his breath, "He's a pimp?"

"Yeah, he gets fresh meat here and takes them back to the hotel. Tells them that he has a nicer place for them, better food, cleaner."

"Thanks."

House got back into the car and took off towards Georgetown Road which was only a few blocks away. He saw the guy standing on the sidewalk talking to her until he was blue in the face. Her arms were crossed and she was arguing with him. House pulled up and rolled down the window.

"Get in,"he yelled at her.

"Hey dude, she's mine. I saw her first."

"Piss off." House yelled at him.

The guy softened his posture, "Hey, she's prime. Almost a virgin. You can have her for $250. That's a bargain."

House looked at him as if he was crazy. "That's my sister sshole. Now get out of here." House picked up his phone and pretended to dial 911. The guy took off. She stood still on the sidewalk, refusing to look at him, "Hey, 123456...get in."

She finally looked at him, "Why did you send me with that smelly man?'

"I didn't...you were the one that went with him."

She walked over to the car, "He said you told him to escort me to the new shelter."

"And you believed him? I _just told you_ exactly where to go and what to say."

"But why would he lie to me? I'm a woman, he's a man."

"Precisely." He opened the door, "Now get in and I'll take you to the shelter."

She got in and they drove the few blocks back. He escorted her up, through the crowd of men and into the shelter. They waited in line with mostly men who smelled of urine and alcohol. She kept looking around and House could tell she was getting more and more nervous.

When they reached the front of the line, a woman in her forties asked, "Name?"

House turned to her, "Isn't it Marie something?"

"You mean Marie Callahan?" She asked House.

"Marie Callahan." He said to the woman taking the information.

"But that's my moth..."

"Does she have a mailing address?" the woman asked.

House looked at his companion and then back to the clerk, "No."

"How long does she plan to stay?"

He turned to her, "How long are you planning to stay? Tonight? Two nights?" She looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear . He felt like a chump. "Three nights." He told the lady.

"Well, she's going to have to take a cot for tonight. We've run out of rooms and beds. I see she already has a blanket. That's good because we don't have any clean ones. We're also out of pillows. She needs to check in by four if she wants a bed and clean sheets. We can get her out of the cold tonight, but it's only a cot, soup and coffee." She looked sternly in 123265's direction, "Ms. Callahan, go find a cot." The lady pointed out into the rows of cots where both men and women, in various states of undress and filth, sat.

House looked at the woman taking the information. "Do they have showers?"

"Yeah, she can take a shower, but it costs $1.00 for the towel rental"

House took out his wallet and as he started to get out the money he looked over at her sitting on a cot. She looked tiny inside the warehouse of humans and rows of cots. Her eyes were darting everywhere in fear as she hugged her blanket to herself. A guy came up to her and yanked on her blanket. She pulled back and pushed him away. She looked over at him, her eyes like saucers and her lip trembling.

"Damn. Damn." House said to the lady. He pounded the table, "Damn."

"Sir? What do you need? I can give you a receipt for your dollar donation."

House just scowled and went over to the cot where she was sitting. He pulled her by the arm and dragged her out of the shelter. He pulled her so fast, even using his cane, that she had to run to keep up with him.

He threw her in the passenger seat and went around to the other side and got in. Without looking at her, he turned on the engine and started to pull out. "Okay, bad idea," was all he said.

They got home and he grabbed a drink and turned to look at her. He realized that if he took her into the hospital for the psych evaluation, (he knew she had missed it because Urich called him in a panic, saying his patient was missing) and they determined she was crazy, they'd just dope her up and send her to the same shelter. It was a vicious reality for the mentally ill.

"Okay, until we can find you alternative digs, you'll be sleeping here. The couch is comfortable." He went to get the linens from the closet in the bathroom. He brought them back out to the living room, but she was missing. He looked in the kitchen and then down the hall. He found her taking off her clothes in his room to get into bed.

She was calm and relaxed, "This bed is fine even if it doesn't have air support. I smell, do you have a place where I can clean up?"

"Whoa. This is _my_ bed, I _sleep_ in my bed. You sleep in the living room.'

She was shocked again, "But...but, I'm a woman, you're a man. I'm sleeping here."

"I'm sleeping here." House demanded.

She thought about it and then asked, "Do you have a place for me to clean my body and hair?"

"The shower is in there. I've put linens and a pillow out in the living room. The sofa makes a comfortable bed. Now, I couldn't sleep last night because of my leg and so I'm tired. I'd appreciate it if you kept the television volume down and make sure the lights are out when you go to sleep."

She went though the bathroom door, but didn't bother to close the door. He grabbed the clothes she had taken off and threw them in her direction. They landed near the bathtub. He stripped down to his boxers and grabbed some water from the kitchen. He didn't hear any sounds from the bathroom except her yelling sporadically. He went back to the bathroom and heard her yell, "On. Warm...Water! Clean? Shower? Ahhhhhh!"

He heard some shuffling in the bathtub. He poked his head in through the curtain in the back and saw a naked woman stomping in frustration and pounding on the wall with the fixtures. "On! Water! Clean! Warm! On!" She was yelling at the wall. She sighed, her shoulders falling forward in defeat. He started to laugh.

"Please tell me that you know how to work a shower." He said.

She turned and looked at him, her face drawn into a deep pout. "I've said everything I can think of...is there a password to get it to start ?"

"Yeah, it's moron." He came to the front of the tub and reached in, pushed the lever down to make the water come out the tub spout. Then he turned on the water for her, balanced the warm and cold water and then pulled the lever to send the water to the shower head.

She cried out in shock when the water hit her."Ahhh!" She opened her eyes, looked at him and grinned. "You have to turn all those knobs?"

He didn't say anything, he just handed her the shampoo and a bar of soap. Then he took a good look at her breasts (he figured she owed him) and went back to bed. He heard her get out and then get back in, the water running the whole time. The next morning he discovered that she had borrowed his razor and taken it into the shower with her.

He heard her start to shut off the water. She must have shut off the hot water first because she let out a yelp and then he heard the other faucet turn off. She got out and after a few minutes, he heard noise in the living room and the lights went out. He was just about asleep when he felt the other side of the bed depress.

He sat up and turned on the light. She was laying on the opposite side, under the sheets with her breasts exposed. "No. You can't sleep here. You especially can't sleep here in the nude."

"You could sleep out there." she said matter of factly.

"No, my house, my rules."

She threw an arm over her face, her voice strained, "I'm so confused. You're a man! Damn it. Why do you act like this?" She sat up on her elbow. "I'm tired, I'm going to let you sleep in here, but I can't take any more insolence from you tonight. Good night."

"Sorry, but insolence is my stock and trade." he looked at her and realized that he was tired too and was tired of arguing, "Put some clothes on and you can stay in here tonight. But just for tonight."

She got up and bent over to get the boxers and the t-shirt, grumbling the whole time about having to wear clothes to bed. He chuckled at the absurdity of it all. He was telling a pretty woman to put her clothes on and to get out of his bed. He waited until she was dressed, under the covers and then turned out the light.

They were quiet, just laying motionless in the dark. She started to drift off when she heard his voice.

"Oh, and no grabbing my balls in my sleep."

She snickered, "Good night Gregory House."

"Good night Marie."

"Marie is my...oh, who cares. Good night."


	6. Chapter 4 Part2  Just Keep On Your Side

Chapter 4 Part 2

The alarm went off and he opened his right eye. He found himself staring at the sleeping face of his guest. She looked so young and pretty, at peace. He turned and as he hit the alarm, she lifted her head.

Her voice was soft and craggy, "What was that noise?"

House sat up and rubbed his face, "The alarm. I set it for 7:30."

Pushing herself up onto her elbows, she asked, "Why?"

"Some of us work for a living."

She let herself fall back onto the pillow. "Am I suppose to get up too?"

He thought about it. If he had to get up and leave, what was she suppose to do while he was gone? "Maybe you should get up and earn your keep."

She looked at him questioningly. "How?"

"Clean up, change the bed, clean the bathroom, do some laundry." He said it, but he wasn't sure that she knew how to do it.

"Okay." The pretty blond woman said as she turned over on her side and went back to sleep.

House left for work, still amused by his houseguest. Eventually she climbed out of the warm bed and looked around. The cleaning supplies were found under the kitchen sink. She read the instructions and started to clean up. After washing the surfaces of the kitchenand bathroom, she found the dirty clothes and looked for something to clean them in. The phone rang and she didn't know what to do. She walked around the phone as it rang, staring at it. It was obviously a communication device, but she wasn't sure how to use it. The answer machine eventually came on and she heard Gregory House's voice come out of it,"I'm not interested. If you really feel the urge to say something, say it at the beep." There was a beep and she heard a voice; it was his.

"Marie, pick up the phone." he said with authority.

She went over and picked the phone up, _the entire phone_, base and receiver. When he didn't hear her answer, House looked over at Wilson, who was standing on the other side of the desk. It finally dawned on him what she was probably doing, "Marie, pick up the thing that sits on top of the phone and put it up to your ear."

She did as he said.

He heard breathing and asked, "Are you there?"

She could hear him through the receiver so she yelled into it,"Yes."

"You're yelling into the earpiece. Speak into the other end."

She turned it over. "Yes?"

"Have you done any laundry?" he asked.

"I don't know where the clothing-cleaner is."

"It's down in the basement, but you better wait until I get home to show you how to use it. It can be tricky."

"Sure. I'll wait. When will you be home?"

House looked at the phone. It felt strange to have a woman asking him when he was going to get home. He inhaled and then filled his cheeks with air which he forced back and forth between his cheeks. "Around 6:00 pm."

"That's four hours from now?"

He looked at his watch. "Yeah. That's right. Is there something wrong?"

"No, I was just wondering when I would get some nourishment."

"Haven't you eaten?"

"No. I can 't find the peanut butter and jam. It's not in the cold machine in the kitchen."

He remembered that he had finished it up the night before. "Yeah, I ate it. Can't you find something else?"

"I tried the milk, but it tasted bad."

He realized that the milk was over 14 days old. " I'll bring some dinner home with me."

"Gregory House?"

"Yes."

"Bring home money too." She said.

He heard a click and wondered what that was about? Around 5:00 pm House finished work, turned off the light in the office and went out to meet Wilson who was waiting for him in the hall.

"I'm gone for the next week on my vacation. I'm worried about your house guest. Her chart said she thinks she's a time traveler,right?" Wilson asked,

House nodded.

"You have to promise you'll bring your time traveler in and get that psych exam," Wilson insisted. Wilson worried that House was finding having a mentally ill person living with him entertaining. If that was the case, he might not get her back into the hospital for the psych exam until she started to bore him. Right now, House wasn't bored.

"Sure, as soon as I make sure she's not physically ill. I'm not convinced that this is something psychological."

"Right, we all think we can travel back and forth in time and walk around nude in public." Wilson frowned.

"Hey, it could be worse. She could be ugly and walk around in the nude." House wiggled his eyebrows.

Wilson took a deep breath to keep from exploding. "House, I don't like this. She's not stable and she's likely to say something that's going to get you in trouble."

"I know. She truly believes that she's a time traveler, but there's something about her that still doesn't make sense. I don't know what it is yet."

"Well, I'll see you when I get back Saturday. Leave a message if you need me for some reason."

"Yeah, tell your cousin to just say "no.""

House watched Wilson disappear into the parking lot before he climbed into his and drove to the Thai restaurant where he picked up the order he had phoned in. When he got home he opened the door and saw her on the floor reading a booklet, a new vacuum sitting next to her. She looked up and her eyes grew big at the sight of food.

"What the hell is this?" He asked, nodding at the vacuum.

"It's a new Kirby Deluxe 6000 Vacuum and Rug Shampooer! It comes with all those attachment things over there and a DVD demonstrating its uses. It will even shampoo carpets!" She stood up and put her hand on top of the handle as if she were a vacuum salesman.

"Do you see any carpets?" House said, feeling his blood pressure rise.

His words didn't phase her. "It's usually $2,200! But I was able to get it for $1,800! Isn't that great?" She smiled broadly at him. "I need money to pay for it. The man who brought this to me is coming back for your check tomorrow. I'm not sure what a check is, do you know?" The time traveler put her hands on her hips and shook her head. "Your old vacuum pales next to this one. It doesn't pick up all the dirt. You should have seen the difference between yours and the incredible Kirby Delux 6000 Vacuum and Rug Shampooer. The man vacuumed the entire room with yours and then went back over it with the Kirby Deluxe 6000. I couldn't believe all the dirt the Kirby Deluxe 6000 picked up that your vacuum missed. I tell you Gregory House, this machine is a marvel of modern technology and according to the man we can't live without it."

He shook his head all the way into the kitchen where he put the food down. He turned around and looked so angry that she stepped back. "What's wrong?"

"You're buying vacuums from strangers who show up at the door! That's what's wrong. You can't open your door to strangers, you'll get killed. And don't buy things from salesmen who come to the door. It's a ripoff."

"Ripoff?" She cocked her head to the side.

He started to take the food out of the bag, "It means that they'll take advantage of you. Now tomorrow when this guy comes back, tell him that you don't want it and that the voices have told you that he's an evil man who should be disposed of."

"You mean I have to give it back?" Her smile dropped and voice was sad.

He threw his hands in the air in frustration! "Yes, you have to give it back. The damn thing isn't worth the $1800, it's not worth half of that. Now here, eat." He shoved a plate of food in front of her. She shoveled it in before he could even walk over to the table and sit down. Putting her fork down, the woman stared at him.

"Christ, you're a Kirby Deluxe 6000. Are you still hungry?"

She nodded an enthusiastic, "Yes."

"There's more in the cartons, help yourself."

She went over and poured the rest of the chicken in peanut sauce out on her plate and walked over to the table and sat down to eat it.

House got up and grabbed a beer. "Do you want something to drink? A beer?"

"What is beer?"

He raised his forehead in surprise, "It's an alcoholic drink made out of hops and barley."

"I'll have water."

He shook his head and gave her a drink of water. "When we're done eating I'll take you to the grocery store and we can pick up some things for you."

"We need those paper pieces."

"Paper pieces?" he felt like he was playing a talking form of charades.

"Those things that are on a roll in the kitchen."

"Paper towels. Okay. But there was a whole roll this morning."

"I used them to clean with and ...to ...we need more."

"What did you use them for?"

She looked around and turned her nose up. "Before I came I was scheduled to receive my medicine, without it I menstruate."

It dawned on House that she was using paper towels as sanitary napkins. "We'll get you something for that. What medicine did you take?"

"I receive a medicine that stimulates follicle development for ova harvesting. At the same time, I get one that prevents menstruation. We all get one that prevents menstruation."

He shook his head unconsciously, "Wait, who harvests ova?"

"I'm a breeder. My ova are healthy. I donate them every quarter so that they can be used to populate the world."

"Your chart said that you've come back in time to save the world. Are you a cheerleader?"

She said nothing, but looked at House like he was the loony one.

"Wilson was right. You're coming in with me tomorrow for an evaluation." He got up and reached down. "Done?" He asked as he took her empty plate.

As they shopped at the local grocery store, House showed her where things were located. When they got to the Feminine Hygiene aisle he pointed to the various napkins and tampons. "I don't know what you prefer, tampon or napkin, but there's a virtual cornucopia of things for your period. You choose."

She picked up each one and read them. Turning to him, she looked utterly confused. "This one is ultra-absorbent, but this one is environmental friendly, guaranteed to break down in a landfill. These tampons let you swim. Are we going swimming?"

"It's February, you may like a dip in Lake Carnegie, but I'm not swimming anytime soon. Look, make up your mind."

"I can't, I don't know what I'm supposed to do."

House grabbed a box of tampons and a bag of Kotex, threw them in the cart and took off. She ran after him. When she caught up she pulled on his shirt and he stopped.

She whispered, "I have a problem."

"Yes?"

"The clothes you gave me...they were...well, I didn't know I was menstruating until it was too late. I've rinsed them out, but I need something to get the stains out."

House realized that she was probably wearing damp boxers as they spoke, something that couldn't be too comfortable in 32°F weather. "We'll go next door to the drugstore and see if they have any panties for you."

"Panties?"

"Women's underwear." House realized that he hadn't even blinked when she asked. He was beginning to get used to explaining the most mundane things to her. It was if he accepted that these things were really foreign to her. "I'm curious, what do they call women's underwear in your time zone?"

"We don't usually wear any clothes, unless it's winter and we have to go out. But we call them Femmes."

"I bet the guys like that."

"We don't live with men. They live in colonies where they can perform the hard labor for society. Since there are so few of them, we try to spread the colonies out."

House leaned on the cart and looked intently at her admiring her imagintation. She had a whole society constructed in that sick mind of hers. What made her tick? Why did she hate men so much? He continued down the asile, "When we get home I want you to tell me about your world."

She shrugged, "Okay.'

They put the groceries away and he grabbed a beer. She was drinking an orange juice and sitting on the sofa. He sat at the other end of it and put his arms up on the back and side. "Okay, tell me about the men."

"Uh, the story begins before I was born. There was a disease that killed most of the men and more than two thirds of the women. The men that were left were either sterile or produced very little sperm. We soon determined that if we were going to survive we needed to control mating. Natural conception and pregnancy were banned. Men were moved into colonies where they could perform the heavy labor that wasn't done by robots. We genetically altered them so that those who did produce viable sperm could produce more, but it only increased the sperm count marginally. We still have to take the semen daily and separate the few viable sperm the male breeders produce.

The female breeders donate ova and conception occurs in a controlled environment. Only 10 per cent of the fetus survive, even under controlled conditions. Most of the male fetus die. It has to do with the virus and its alteration of the genetic code. Females have some protection because of their hormones, but we haven't been able to pass that on to the males.

What else do you want to know?"

"This virus, tell me about it."

The general population called it _The Scourge_, but it was a Retric Virus, a new virus that came out of the wild with a whimper, killing rodents and slowly effecting the birth rates of male humans. The virus mutated and recombined to form so many variants that they were unable to control it with a vaccine. We've discovered that it took years before anyone really noted the decline in the male population. By the time scientists started looking at it in earnest the virus recombined with the influenza virus creating a pandemic that went through the world population in three waves. We lost most of the world's population and the majority of the people left were sterile.

We had to populate the world with clones just to meet our needs for services such as utilities, food and transportation. In my time zone only 5 per cent of the population were born from the fertilization of an egg by a sperm and that was done uncer a controlled environment."

House smiled widely at her. "Damn you tell a good tale. I was sitting here thinking it all through. It makes sense that you'd have to clone people just to keep the sewers, power, government all going. I have to give you credit, you're intelligent enough to have thought your fantasy all the way through. But I'm curious, men, why are they colonized?"

"After the pandemic, they started wars, especially clone wars. The women had enough. We now keep them contained in areas to themselves. They aren't allowed contact with the outside world. Most women have never seen a man."

"How do you pleasure yourselves without men?"

She smiled, "Pleasure ourselves? What does that mean?"

"Sex. Have sex. Are you all lesbians?"

She turned bright red and sat up straight. "Touching is forbidden! We know it can be addictive and so we are taught early not to touch ourselves or each other. All reading materials that discuss touching or love between a man and a woman or a woman and a woman are banned although we still have copies of it in the National Library. But only specific people have access to those reading materials."

"So some people are given privileges that others don't have?"

"Yes."

"What about sex, can some people have sex?"

"I have sex, but like I said, most people don't."

"You do? Hmmm. That's interesting."

She jumped up and grabbed the brown bag. "I forgot about the pinties."

"Panties."

"I'm going to go put them on."

He waited and after a few minutes he heard her yell, "Gregory House?"

He went back to the bathroom and cracked the door without going inside, "Yes?"

"Could you bring the other feminine products. These tampons don't fit."

He chuckled to himself trying to imagine why the tampons didn't fit. He went out to get the Kotex, sticking his hand through the door with the bag. It was grabbed out of his hand and ten minutes later she came out wearing a t-shirt and her new panties which were bulging like a huge diaper.

"How many of those did you put on?"

"All of them."

"Oh crap." There were a dozen Kotex in the package.

He sorted her out and managed to not laugh too hard while doing so. They sat in the living room talking until 10:30 pm. She told him about time travel and what had probably happened to her. When she went to bed, he sat up thinking about her tale and how detailed it was. She had a fertile mind, that was for sure. He felt ridiculous, but he wondered if there had been a decrease in the rodent population in Princeton? He wondered if they kept statistics at PPTH regarding the gender of the fetuses that had been spontaneously aborted? He would have to check it out sometime.

In the morning, House woke her up and took her down to the basement to show her how to work the washer and dryer. She appeared to be nervous, but she accepted the job with enthusiasm. He threw her a newer pair of sweat pants and a belt so that she could wash the old ones. House had decided that, for now, she wasn't a harm to anyone so he would wait one more day to take her in for an evaluation. This way he could at least get his laundry done.

After work, House drove home, walked in and heard noise in the kitchen. He found her standing over the stove with a skillet of food yelling, "Baamm! Bam! Bam?"

He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead in disbelief. When he looked up she was bent over, looking under the skillet. "I give up. What are you doing?"he asked.

She jumped, not expecting anyone to be in the apartment with her. "I was watching the vid today and this man, Emeril, showed me how to put all of these things together in a skillet. He said, "Bam" and the fire cooked it and the woman in the chair next to him said it was delicious. But nothing happens when I say bam or turn these dials."

He walked over, "You have to push the dial in first and then turn it before you say "Bam"." He did it for her and the familiar click of the igniter sounded. He couldn't help it; he yelled, "Bam!" and the fire lit. Her mouth dropped and she looked at him like a child who has just seen their Christmas presents under the tree. House was astonished at how innocent and sweet she looked.

"Wow! You're good!"she said.

House had to admit, it smelled good, whatever was in the skillet. She stirred it and watched it cook.

"When you're done, just turn the dial the other way." He grabbed a Naked Juice and sat down to watch "vid" for awhile. The house looked clean and there were piles of clean clothes all over the living room. He yelled into the kithen, "You need to fold these or hang them up as soon as you get them out of the dryer or they wrinkle."

She came out and looked at him. "Fold them? Oh, okay. Should I do that now or continue to cook dinner?"

"Later. I'm hungry."

She went back into the kitchen and finished preparing the food, eventually presenting it on a plate to him. The presentation was as he imagined it looked on television. He tasted it and nodded to her with approval. She smiled and took a bite. They both looked up and grinned because the food was hot and delicious. 123265 was especially pleased because she had never had a home cooked meal in her life.

"He promised a new recipe tomorrow called Tuesday's surprise. I can make it, but I'll need more things from the grocery store."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a $50 bill. "Here, take this and pick up what you need. No picking up men."

She wasn't sure if he was joking. "I watched General Hospital for you. Did you know that they allow men to touch the women on that program? That brown haired woman is pregnant with her cousin's child." House listened with interest, amused by her version of the soap opera. "And her cousin must have wandered away from his colony, because he said that he no longer liked to sleep with men."

A smiled curled across House's face as he saw how perplexed she appeared. He realized she had no makeup on and yet she looked fresh, pretty. She was cleaning and stacking the dishes and talking the whole time, clearly relieved to have someone to talk with. After awhile, House stopped listening and got up to go into the living room.

He went over to the piano and started to play. Looking over, he saw her come out of the kitchen to listen, standing three feet away from the piano like a statue. She was staring down at him in silence. He asked, "Don't they have pianos where you come from?"

"Yes, but not this big. I was wondering if it played the same way as mine. I was going to play it, but I didn't want to break it.'

"You play?"

"A little."

"Unless you play a lot, don't touch my piano," he warned. The last thing he wanted was someone using his piano to play Chopsticks. She sat down and continued to listen to him play. House couldn't help it, he was curious. What did music sound like in the "future?" "Okay, now you play me something from your century."

He stood up and sat on the couch as she took his place on the bench. She tentatively touched the keys to see how hard she had to press to work them. She looked at him, smiled and then the most dissonant music he had heard came out of the piano. He was about to stop her when he realized that under the dissonance was a haunting melody that played off and reverberated around the top chords. It was both unnerving and beautiful, a type of music he had never heard before. It gave him chills. Either she was a musical prodigy or she really was from the future. She played several songs, some which seemed pedestrian to him, others which were clearly genius. He wasn't sure what to think.

When they were done playing piano, he asked her about Genetics in her "time zone." She explained the evolution of Genetic theory over the last two centuries and how, just like the discovery of String Theory; the discovery of a basic enzyme linked to all genetic material had led scientist to conclude that the enzyme was the catalyst for all mutations and recombinations in cells, but not viruses. This single enzyme was Darwin's Natural Selector, the essence of change in most living matter. Some suggested it was God.

In a way, she scared him because she made sense to him. 123265 spoke slightly above his level of understanding. He could grasp most of the concepts, but he was clearly lacking some information to understand all of it. He said nothing, but wondered if she was like Nash, the winner of the Nobel Prize. Was she a genius with Schizophrenia?

The next day he thought about her all day long not able to figure her out. Cuddy came into the office and could see he was deep in thought as he stared at the wall. She almost walked back out, but decided it couldn't wait.

"House?'

He looked up.

"I need your malpractice forms filled out," she said. "Are you alright?"

"I was just wondering. Has obstetrics said anything to you about a decrease in the number of males being born in Princeton?"

She jerked back at the odd question, "No, I haven't heard anything. Why?'

"Nothing." He opened his desk drawer and pulled out the form and handed it to her.

Cuddy was surprised to see it filled out. "Thanks." She turned to go, took a look back and saw House staring once again at the wall, and decided she better alert obstetrics to keep track of how many males were being born in the hospital.


	7. Chapter 5Part  1Marie Gets An Education

**Chapter 5 **

**Marie Gets an Education**

Saturday night she announced, "I know how to work the DVD!"

"My God, I can die now." he responded.

"What?"

He shook his head at her failure to get the joke, "Nothing. I'm fixing myself a drink, want one?"

"Sure, what are you making?"

"A double Scotch on the rocks."

She cocked her head, "I've never had Double Scotch. What is it?"

"Alcohol. Lots of it."

"Hmmm. I've never had any alcohol. It's banned."

"Well if you can't touch yourselves, I can understand why it's banned."

She didn't understand him so she went back to pulling out all of his DVDs from the cupboard. She was going to go through each of them and watch them so that she could understand this society and what she needed to do to survive. She found a DVD that looked like a good place to start, "Training Day for Debbie."

She started it while he went in to fix the drinks. She was sitting, almost laying, in the chair. She saw the man kiss the woman and her stomach churned. Within minutes they were both naked and the man grabbed the woman.

_He's holding her too close. My God, what's that? Oh my God, it's a man's genitals...it's so big! She's holding it. What is he doing? He's stabbing her!_

House heard a blood curdling scream and looked out to see her jump up and run behind the chair and duck. He grabbed his cane and practically ran out into the living room. He looked at her and then the DVD player. She had managed to find his porn collection and was in the middle of a couple having rigorous sex.

"What is he doing to her?" she asked cautiously from her crouched position behind the chair.

"They're just having sex. What's wrong with you?"

"It's just that I've never seen it from that angle!"

"What angle _have_ you seen it from?" House asked. The phone rang. As he walked to the phone he said, "For someone who's had sex, you seem rather freaked out about it." Picking up the receiver he answered,"Hello?" House reluctantly responded to a question from his team,"Fine, give him the steroids and hand him over." Their patient had a rare form of liver cancer and was now Oncology's headache.

Marie was now standing up behind the chair watching the couple on the screen, "Is she in pain? She's doing a lot of moaning, but she's not trying to get away from him."

House threw his head back and laughed. "I think the young lady is enjoying herself. Or at least she wants us to believe that."

"Is he enjoying himself?" She turned and looked at House who handed her the drink.

"Uh, I'd have to give that an affirmative." House said smirking. He took a swig and watched her take a drink.

"Ohhh!" She started fanning her mouth. "That's a strange feeling. That's what alcohol tastes like?"

"Just Scotch. If you don't want the rest of it, you can give it back to me. I'll drink it."

"What other alcohol do you have?"

House went back into the kitchen and looked up in the liquor cabinet above the refrigerator, "Baileys, Glenlivet, Maker's Mark, Galliano, Patron, Kahlua, Amaretto, Grey Goose and Dry Sack. In the frig I have Chardonnay and beer."

"What do you think I would like?"

"Something sweet. I'll make you a Root Beer Float."

"What's that?"

"Kahlua, coke, cream, Galliano and ice. It tastes like a root beer float." He pulled down the ingredients and mixed one up for her, realizing she had no clue what root beer tasted like.

She was unsure about tasting it but then he smiled, motioning for her to drink up. She took a sip and smiled, "I like it!" She drank half of it in one gulp.

"Whoa Nellie! You need to nurse that...don't drink it all at once or you'll be pole dancing."

"Pole Dancing?"

"I'll teach you later. Want to watch some porn?" he motioned to the DVD.

"Porn?"

He sighed, "I was just joking. Any media that shows people having explicit sex is called porn. You're watching it right now."

"Really. Is this popular?" She asked him as she sat down next to him on the sofa.

"With men it is. Women tend to be offended by it."

She looked at the screen again and shrugged. "Why? Look, the woman's sitting on top of him and she's enjoying it! Why would women be offended by that?"

He held up his drink. "I like you!"

Shocked, she was unable to answer. Then it hit her, "You're just joking aren't you?"

He nodded. "Shh. Watch the movie."

When it got to the part where the voluptuous red head started giving the well-endowed male lead a blow job, 123265 turned to House and said, "You see, she wouldn't have to do that if she had the Kirby Deluxe 6000."

House spewed his sip of Scotch and roared with laughter. He started coughing when some of it went down the wrong pipe. "I didn't realize that you had a sense of humor."

"I didn't realize your time zone had anything to laugh at."

He raised his glass to her and she responded in a toast, "I see they still toast in the future."

"We sure do. When there's something to toast."

The rather short porn flick ended and House asked her what DVD she'd like to watch next. Walking over to the stack of DVDs on the floor, she bent over, She went over to view them. The unavoidable sight of her ass sticking up in the air had him imagining all kinds of things. He saw himself taking her from behind right there, on the floor. She turned to say something and saw the look on his face.

"Are you okay? You look a little strange."

"Uh...I'm fine." He exhaled, "What did you decide on?"

"Here, Doogie Hoser, M.D. It says, "Ever since Doogie Hoser, the world's youngest gynecologist opened his practice, women have been clamoring to climb up on the table, put their feet in the stirrups and spread 'em for the youthful Doc! No need for an appointment...the Doctor is in!" She looked up, "It sounds like a comedy."

House shook his head as if he was trying to get a bad scene out of his thoughts. "That's more porn."

"It is?" She frowned, "Are you really that obsessed with sex?"

"I'm really obsessed with the idea of it. Every guy is."

"Why?"

"We're genetically supposed to pro-create. It's in our genes to try and spread our seed, add to the gene pool. Sex feels good, really good and its considered naughty. Men like to be naughty."

She emptied her glass and tilted her head with curiosity. "Do women like sex?"

"Yeah, but they just don't admit it. It feels just as good for them if done right."

"Wow, is this room moving?" she asked.

He leaned forward, putting down his empty glass and picking up the Scotch he had poured for her. "You're drunk and I'm not too far behind you."

She grinned and wiggled a finger back and forth. "No you aren't silly, you're right in front of me."

He went over to the cupboard to survey his DVDs and CDs. "Well, we could play some music or find a different DVD. Here's Jurassic Park, do they have that in your time zone?"

They watched Jurassic Park while nursing more Root Beer Floats and a double Scotch on the Rocks. When it was over, Marie followed House back to the bathroom where they brushed their teeth and before climbing in bed. House was starting to feel the tumbling effects of the alcohol as the room started to turn on its axis. He squeezed his eyes closed tightly and wasn't sure he was hearing right.

"Why don't we be naughty?" She asked with a clinical tone.

He froze, face blankd, eyes staring straight at the ceiling. He was pretty sure his mind was playing tricks.

She squirmed a little and then cleared her throat. "I mean, we don't have to copulate if you don't want to but I'm not allowed to mix socially with men at home so I doubt I'll get another chance. I'm sure I'm going to get pulled back to my time zone soon. I'm a scientist and I just thought it would be interesting to find out what all the moaning is about. I didn't feel that when I had sex."

He picked himself up on his elbow and tried to gauge whether or not he could even perform. When he found his body responding to just the mention of sex, he smiled. "I can be naughty. But are you sure?Or is it just the alcohol talking?"

She laughed. "I don't understand, can't you see that I'm the one talking? I want to copulate, but are you sure you want to have sexual intercourse with me? You were pretty mad at me about the Kirby Deluxe 6000."

He nodded vigorously. "I can forgive you." He said looking over at her.

She swallowed hard, "Okay. What do you want me to do?"

"Uh, let me get a rubber."

"A ...'

"It's birth control."

"Oh."

He took out a Trojan from the night stand and put it within reach. Turning over, he found her lying straight as a board waiting for something to happen. "I'm going to take your t-shirt off so I can see your breasts."

She helped him take the top off and then slid her panties down her thighs and over her feet. He touched her breasts like they were a fragile glass, a milky white with blue veins running to her nipples. He flicked her nipple with his tongue and quickly realized he better put the rubber on, this was escalating fast because of the booze. He was having a hard time controlling his reactions to seeing her naked. Her body had beautiful curves, perky breasts and shapely legs and she smelled like vanilla.

He sucked her breasts while pushing her legs apart. "Bend your knees." She bent her knees up as she swallowed hard. House looked down between her legs and said with some trepidation, "Damn."

"What's wrong?"

"This is going to be fast." He felt for her and opened her up to guide himself in. She spread her legs a little further to accommodate his hips. The condom was lubricated, so he continued, knowing that he hadn't really had time to stimulate her. He decided he'd pay attention to her after he came. Pushing hard, he coule tell that this was going to be an extremely tight fit.

_She must have had sex with a pigmy. Christ she's tight._

Thrusting as fast as he could, he could feel the friction that was driving him deep into pleasurable territory, but it was hard going. His concentration on his own pleasure had kept him from realizing that Marie was trying to push him off.

"You're hurting me! You're hurting me. You said it would feel good. Gregory House, it hurts!" She was crying. But he was in the last throes and couldn't stop even if he wanted to stop.

"Hold on, it will be over soon. Hold ooooo...oh, God. God, you're tight. Jesus H. Christ. You're like a vice grip." He felt the explosion and the waves of pleasure course through him. When he was done, he was spent and tired. Pulling out of her, the rubber almost came off. "Damn you're so tight you almost pulled the rubber off." He finally noticed that she was whimpering.

"You hurt me, said it would feel good and it didn't." She stopped and felt below the sheet, " Something's wet down there."

House pulled the cover back to let the light in so he could see. The sheet was a crimson red and there was more blood on the rubber. He felt clammy and shocked, confused by what he saw. "I thought you said you had sex before?"

"I have. They take ova from me every quarter."

"That's not sex, that's harvesting!" he wrinkled his nose.

"We call it sex."

He snorted. "A doctor takes a needle, slips inside and grabs your eggs and you call that sex?"

"It's all part of procreation. We refer to it as the sexual act."

House pulled down the covers to reveal their naked bodies for her to see. "This was sex. Bad sex, but sex." He didn't understand why a woman her age was a virgin. Her naivete and her delusions just added to his curiosity.

She sat up and ran into the bathroom, yelling from the sink. "_You said it would feel good_."

He followed her, throwing the rubber in the toilet and flushing it. She watched with great interest as it went down the bowl. "It will feel good after a few more times."

She turned to him wide-eyed, her breathing fast and heavy. "The liquid in that rubber, was that semen?"

"Yeah and a lot of it. It's been awhile." He wondered why she was staring so strangely at him, "I was saving it all for you."

"Did it contain sperm? Do you make sperm?" she asked like she had just discovered the pleasure of chocolate.

"I make enough." He chuckled.

"Enough for what?"

"_To need a condom,"_ he groaned, exasperated with all of her questions.

She thought for a second and then started back in on him. "You lied to me."

"I didn't know you were a virgin. Virgins have a hymen that stretches across the vagina. It's broken when they have sex for the first time and it's uncomfortable. Once you have sex a few times, it will heal and you won't hurt anymore."

"That's a likely story. I know about the hymen, but our records don't show it hurting when it's broken."

"You aren't reading the right records."

She went back into the bedroom and crawled under the covers, jerking them over her shoulder in a huff. "Oh, and I'm not wearing those stupid clothes tonight, so you can forget about telling me to put them on."

"It doesn't much matter anymore, we've had sex now."

She looked at him, totally confused and shook her head then turned away and went to sleep.


	8. Chapter 5 Part2 MarieGetsAnEducation

**Chapter 5 Part 2 Marie Gets an Education**

Sunday morning House received a call to come into the hospital, he had a patient. He spent most of the day trying to diagnose the patient after getting the teenage girl stabilized. She was experiencing liver failure and House had his team run several tests that would not be back until Monday. He went home at 4:00 pm and was surprised to find a plastic bag sitting on the coffee table with a pair of panties and Marie's toothbrush.

She looked out from the kitchen and yelled, "I'm just heating up the sauce for the chicken now. Do you want a beer?"

He walked into the kitchen and watched as she turned the stove on, the ignitor clicking. Just before the fire caught, she yelled, "Bam!" He put his hand over his mouth as he chuckled so that she wouldn't see. He realized that she thought she had to say Bam or the fire wouldn't ignite.

He grabbed a beer and she said, "Could you put the dishes and condiments on the table?"

"You want me to 'set' the table. That's what we call it, "set the table.""

"Okay, please set the table."

He nodded and grabbed the dishes and condiments. After he was done, he sat down at the table, still slightly hung over from the night before and feeling tired. A few minutes later she brought out the chicken in a sweet and sour sauce with rice and green peas. She was eating quickly, like she had something to do.

"Why are you eating like there's no tomorrow?"

She looked up at the clock, "Because Bradley is going to pick me up at 5:30 pm."

House looked up, the clock on the DVD said, "5:13 pm". "Bradley?"

She smiled and looked excited. "Bradley, I met him at the grocery store and he helped me pick out fruit. We started talking. I told him that I had just landed in Princeton and he said that he was new in town too. I told him that you took me out of a homeless shelter, gave me alcohol and that we had bad sex last night." She took a drink and said with an accusatory tone, "He says that sex isn't suppose to hurt if the male is gentle and nice to the woman. He told me that if I come over tonight, he'll have sex with me and be gentle."

House dropped his fork and clenched his jaw. "You stupid moron! You stupid, stupid moron! Jesus Christ! You're going to go out and have sex with a stranger? You told him I got you out of a homeless shelter to have _bad sex with you_? You're not going."

"Excuse me? You're the male. You don't tell me what to do."

"Look, I rarely take responsibility for anything if I can help it, but I'm responsible for this and you can't start having sex with men you meet in grocery stores."

"Why not? It can't hurt any worse than it did last night."

He threw his long hands up and shook his head in frustration. "It's unwise to have sex with strangers. There are sexually transmitted diseases and you don't really know if he will treat you well. He could tell you that he'll treat you nicely and then slit your throat."

"Kind of like telling you that it will feel good and it doesn't?'

"Marie, I told you, sex hurts the first few times a woman has it. It will feel better after you do it a few times."

"Okay, so in five minutes I'm going to go do it again."

He shook his head. "You're not going. I won't let you. If he killed you or gave you HIV, I'd be responsible. No, you're not going."

There was a honk outside. She jumped up and grabbed her bag. "I'll be back tomorrow."

House wrenched the bag from her hand and threw it across the room. He grabbed his coat, put it on and hobbled outside, Marie running after him. There was a stout, but attractive, guy, maybe thirty, in a Ford Focus waiting with the engine running. When he saw House hobbling towards him with Marie following his face froze with fear. Reaching in, House grabbed his collar. Marie ran to the passenger side and got in.

House yelled at her, "Get out of the car."

"Mister, she's over 21, she can go with whomever she wants." Bradley volunteered.

"Yeah? Well, did she tell you that I'm her doctor and she's under psychiatric care? Hmmm? Yeah, ask her. Ask her about time travel. Go on." House waited a second. Marie pursed her lips and crossed her chest with her arms.

"Marie, is that your name?" Bradley asked her cautiously.

"No! My name is 123265. He keeps calling me by my mother's name."

House piped up again, "Ask her if she ever met her mother."

The guy swallowed, his forehead dripping in sweat even though the temperature had dipped into the forties. "Did you meet your mother?"

Marie glared at House. "No, my mother was dead fifty years when I was born. But, I look like her."

"Do you really believe in time travel?" He said it in such a way that she knew he wouldn't believe her.

She looked at the guy and then growled at House, got out of the car and ran inside, slamming the door.

House looked at the guy and gave smiled with sympathy, "Remember that saying, _If it looks too good to be true, it probably is?_ You need to get a tattoo of that on your ass." House turned around and went inside.

Marie was sitting, pouting on the couch. House took off his coat and sat down in the easy chair, occasionally looking at her. He pounded the chair, "And I don't care how much you beg, I'm not have bad sex with you tonight."

She looked at him, gave him a scowl, jumped up and ran into the bedroom, where she eventually fell asleep.

Monday morning House was more than grateful to see Wilson sitting in his office. He scaled the balcony wall separating the balconies outside their offices and pounded on the glass door until Wilson let him in. "We had sex."

Wilson closed his eyes and shook his hea. "You had sex with a mentally disturbed woman that's staying in your house under your protection?'

"She was a virgin."

Wilson's look of horror said it all. House looked as contrite as House could look. Wilson hemmed and hawed, starting and stopping sentences, "Well, what do you want me to say?"

"Now she's telling everyone that we had bad sex and I hurt her."

"_House!_ I told you this would happen."

House couldn't look at him so he stared out the window.

Wilson shook his head slowly and finally said, "Well, I thought I would probably spend most of my day telling everyone about my vacation. I see I was mistaken. I'm going to spend it listening to your sorted story of seduction."

"_She asked for it."_ House moaned.

"Right, virgins always do and we men always give them what they want."

House got up and started out the door.

Wilson blurted out, "House, you need to stop this. You need to get her help right away before you get into serious trouble."

House looked at his friend, nodded, opened the door and left, returning to his office. He started researching a possible diagnosis for his current patient when he received a phone call.

"House," he answered.

"Dr. House?"

House wanted to scream, _I've already answered that question_, "Yes?"

"Dr. Cuddy said I should call you with this information. My name is Dale Parsons down in Obstetrics. I'm an obstetrical nurse. Dr. Cuddy asked us to look into the statistics of the gender of babies being born and spontaneously aborted in the last year. She said that you had expressed an interest."

House sat up straight. "Yes?"

"Well, oddly enough, we've noticed an anomaly. In the last five years, the birthrate of males to females has been .95 to 1 and the spontaneous abortion rate of those babies old enough to be identified when aborted show that males babies are being aborted at a rate of 7 males to 5 females. In the five years before that, the birthrate of male to females was 1.08 to 1 and the abortion rate was even."

"So these are the statistics for spontaneous abortion, not selective abortion, right?'

"Yes Doctor. Dr. House, this information has turned our department topsy turvy. We hadn't and wouldn't have noticed this anomaly. At least not unless it got worse. Could you explain to me why you suspected something?"

"I didn't. Someone else I know did. Can you send me these statistics in writing?"

"Certainly, Dr. Howard is going to submit a paper to the CDC. This may mean nothing, but it could also be an indicator of something big."

"Right. Thanks."

"You're welcome." House leaned back and twisted the big felt ball he kept on his desk in his hands. It took a few seconds, but then he realized, he had goose bumps down his arms.


	9. Chapter 6 Part 1 RATS

**Please leave a comment, this is the first time I've done a sci-fi genre and would like to know if you are enjoying it! Gorblimey2**

**CHAPTER 6**

**RATS**

I had been stealing money from Gregory House and trapping rats downstairs. It wasn't much money. When he gave me money to go to the store, I always kept half of the change and returned the rest to him. I don't think he suspected. I needed the money so that I could purchase a microscope and the necessary reagents to conduct my research on the rats.

I had found a cage in the back of Gregory House's closet. I don't know what he used it for, but it came in handy. I trapped three rats and was keeping them in a small closet in the basement. I was treating them as humanely as I could considering they were rats. But when one died, I wrapped him in plastic and then butcher paper and put him in the freezer.

I wanted so desperately to go home. I couldn't wait for the Gatekeepers to trace me. I felt like I was inside-out living in 2007. People acted so differently, treated each other so differently. Men seemed to actually be in superior positions. There were more males in leadership positions that females! Men were allowed to speak and touch women freely. People were allowed to touch themselves and give themselves sexual pleasure. They were even allowed to copulate.

I had tried copulation and wasn't that enthused over it. It hurt. I wasn't sure if it was me, the fact it was my first time, or Gregory House's poor performance. But after he chased away Bradley, I wasn't keen on trying it again anyway.

Gregory House drove me crazy. He was so cruel and mean, yet he went out of his way to protect me and make sure I was safe. Sometimes he was kind and generous. I felt like I was in a hurricane and didn't know which way the wind was blowing from one day to the next. There were days when I was sorry to see him go to work and others where I just wanted to put him in his transport and get him the hell out of the apartment.

I had been saving money for the microscope for several weeks. I had seen one on the internet. I still had a long way to go to be able to afford the microscope I wanted when I had a bit of luck. I had decided to clean out Gregory House's bedroom closet. It was full of dirty clothes and he frequently spent fruitless hours trying to find something that he swore was in the closet. I pulled everything out and was shocked to find out how big the closet was and how much crap he had managed to cram into it.

I hit pay dirt. I found a black reinforced cardboard box with metal reinforced corners.. I opened it and inside was a gorgeous DMBA300 biological microscope with a Color Corrected Infinity Optical System and a built-in 2.0 mega pixel digital camera. It was an exquisite antique, but I knew it was more than adequate for the job I had to do. I took out the little instruction booklet and played with it until I realized I only had an hour before Gregory House would get home. I took the box and stored it under my side of the bed. I was hastily putting things back, trying to organize the closet a little as I did, when I came across a box containing things called, "photo albums." I opened one up and saw a very bored child posing with a dark haired woman and a dark-gray haired man in a military uniform. I looked carefully and recognized the eyes as those of Gregory House. I saw that he was miserable, but I was still jealous. These were obviously his parents and it was clear that his mother adored him and his father appeared to be proud of him. Gregory House was holding up an award, I couldn't make out what it was. His parents were behind him, smiling at him. I wanted parents. Live ones that were proud of me, that loved me. I pulled out the photo and stuck it in my front pocket of my sweat pants, the speckled ones.

Things had been a little strained between Gregory House and I for the last week, ever since the night we had sex. He seemed somewhat embarrassed about it all. I didn't care, I just had no interest in repeating the fiasco. I had just put the last box away when I heard the door open.

I walked out to the living room, "Hi."

"Hi." he replied. He seemed annoyed, preoccupied. He had a bag in his hand.

I walked into the kitchen where I was cooking a casserole. He spent some time in the bedroom and then came out with the bag. He handed it to me.

"What is it?" I asked him.

"I figure its time you had something of your own."

I opened the bag and pulled out a purple track suit with a white stipe down the side. There was also a plain white t-shirt, slightly tailored. I was pleased with it. I took it out of the bag, stripped down to my panties and put it on. He didn't bother to watch me try it on, he went into the living room and sat down to read. It fit well, maybe a little long in the sleeves, but I just rolled them up. It looked good with my blonde hair and gray eyes.

I stood next to him and almost had to touch him to get his attention. He finally looked up. I tried to sound as pleasant as I could, "Thank you. It's lovely. I like it a lot."

He didn't register any reaction. He just continued reading his medical journal.

I was excited about the outfit. I had started to feel somewhat strange always going to the grocery store wearing the same thing. I hadn't fixed my hair since slipping. I just wore it down all the time. It was a wavy honey blonde that curled at the ends. I pulled my hair back and found a rubber band to put it into a pony tail. I played piano for a little bit while the casserole finished.

I turned to him, "I thought maybe we could go for a walk after dinner."

"I'm not in the mood."

I was hurt. I hadn't been anywhere except the grocery store. I was afraid to go anywhere else by myself because I was afraid I would break some social taboo. I just wanted to go out for a few minutes and do something other than clean or cook or watch television. I tried to remind myself, as I had many times before, this was temporary and I would soon be home in my own air bed. I just needed to keep things status quo and I would survive to return home.

There was a knock on the door. Gregory House didn't get up, he simply yelled, "Come in." as if he were expecting someone.

I was rather excited, we had a visitor. The male came in and smiled warmly at me. He had lovely deep brown eyes and wavy brown hair cut short at the sides and a little longer on top. I was surprised to find that I wasn't upset that another male was present. House looked at me and then at our guest.

"Introduce yourselves before the two of you burst out in song."

Our guest walked over extending his hand, "I'm Jim Wilson."

I stood up and smiled, "I'm 123265. But call me Marie."

He nodded, "Hello Marie." He turned to House, "I brought red wine. I hope it goes with the meal."

"Meal?" I looked at Gregory House.

He looked at me expressionless, "I invited Wilson to dinner."

"To dinner? Here?"

"House! You didn't tell her?" Our guest was obviously displeased.

"It's my apartment." he said.

I could see that Jim Wilson was angry with Gregory House. I got up and went into the kitchen to see if we had enough for three of us. I was nervous, worried that the food wouldn't taste good and Jim Wilson would be disappointed in me.

Jim Wilson followed me into the kitchen as I was checking the casserole.

"I'm going to go. I just wanted to say that it was nice meeting you."

"You're not staying for dinner?"

"I don't want to intrude. I thought House had told you I was coming."

I must have looked upset, because he added, "Perhaps we can all go out to dinner some time."

I wanted him to stay. I wanted someone to talk to. "Have I said something wrong Jim Wilson?"

He quickly said, "Oh, no. I just don't want to cause any problems for you."

"Please, Jim Wilson, stay. Gregory House has mentioned you and I would love to talk to you."

He chuckled, "Please call me Jim. I'll stay if you let me help. I'll set the table." He went to the cabinets and knew exactly where everything was. Gregory House stayed seated by the television until I told him we were ready to eat.

"Gregory House, can you get the cork screw for the wine?" I yelled to him while he was in the kitchen.

"Why do you call him Gregory House?" Jim asked.

I looked at both of them, "I don't understand, it's his name."

House sat down at the table, "No, he means that we usually call someone by only one of their names, either Greg or House. I don't care which you use."

"Oh." I felt stupid. I had been calling him by his full name and he hadn't bother to tell me.

The food was passed around and everyone took some of the casserole and salad. Jim and I talked a little about art and opera. Greg hadn't participated in the conversation, looking very preoccupied with something else.

Finally, House looked at me, "Tell Wilson about _The Scourge._"

I knew I was being baited. "Jim doesn't want to hear about it."

"Oh, don't be so shy." He turned to Jim, took a swig of beer and said, "My favorite part is how she traveled back in time to save the human race. Of course she screwed up and ended up here," he turned back to me, "but at least you tried to save us."

"House." Jim said in a low voice.

"You know, if you're telling the truth you should be able to tell Jim and I something that's going to happen soon."

"I can't remember anything dramatic that happens in 2007. I've spent most of my time studying the next century and surveying it. I only came back this far on a hunch after reading some statistics. I didn't think I'd be interacting or observing humans so I spent most of my time reviewing the topography and geography of the area to look for rodents."

"Yeah, how convenient." He said, chewing his food.

Wilson interrupted, "This is delicious. Really."

"Oh, I do remember that there's a hurricane in August. I remember that because hurricanes effect the dates that I can travel."

"Gee, and hurricanes in August are so unusual." House said rolling his eyes.

"There's an outbreak of Marburg in Garbon linked back to fruit bats. It spreads all over Africa at the end of the summer." she offered.

"Anything in March?"

"I'm not sure, I think the Recession starts in 2007, but I can't remember if it's at the beginning of the year or end of the year."

House looked at Wilson, "I'll have to rush out and sell that stock that's been sitting around the apartment."

I kept my mouth shut. I think Jim felt sorry for me, "It doesn't matter. Where did you go to school?" Jim asked.

"I went to Harvard and Johns Hopkins."

Greg lifted his head and looked at me. "You went to Hopkins? They have a Hopkins in your time zone?"

"Yes. After getting my medical degree, I specialized in Genetics and Epidemiology at Hopkins."

He sat back and laughed, "You're a doctor and you didn't know about having sex the first time?"

Jim coughed, "House. It's the dinner table."

"Oh. Yeah, excuse me. Please pass the salt and, you're a doctor and didn't know about it hurting when you have sex for the first time?"

"We no longer have an obstetrics department and gynecology is limited to the study of gynecological diseases." I told him.

"You really want us to believe your story?"

"Why don't you?" I asked.

House smiled, "Because you're talking about time travel and catastrophic disease. You sound like a poor version of a Steven King novel."

I could feel my voice drop with my spirits, "I'm telling the truth."

House sighed and shook his head at me.

"It's an interesting story." He smiled sweetly, "Will we cure cancer?"

"Several types, but not all. In the not too distant future you'll start using glutathione S-transferase based medicines and have great success."

Jim stopped and looked at me. He turned to House and it was clear to me that Jim was disturbed by what I said.

House looked at Jim and shook his head, 'What?"

" Glutathione S-transferase is the enzyme found in green tea. My friend is currently working on a drug using glutathione S-transferase as the primary ingredient."

"Big deal, I read an article two weeks ago that said green tea had cancer preventing properties. She probably read the same article."

I was hurt. I said quietly, "I didn't read any such article."

I could see Jim relaxed, convinced that I had obtained my information from current articles. I didn't care. I'd be gone soon, back to my time and none of this would matter. I cleared the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher. As I continued to clean up, I realized I did care. Even though I didn't want to, I had immediately liked Jim and wanted him to like me. But, I could see that he was convinced I was mentally ill and spoke to me like I was emotionally fragile. I just wanted to be alone. No, I wanted to go home. I wanted to be surrounded by women, intelligent women who could carry on a conversation and not treat me like an idiot.

I stuck my head out into the living room. They were watching a program on Dirty Bombs and Cesium 137. I cleared my throat, "I think I'll go to bed and read. Goodnight Jim, it was nice meeting you."

Jim stood up, "Yes, it was nice meeting you too."

I went back to the bedroom, but realized I had forgotten to pour myself a drink of water which I always kept on my night stand. I slipped into the kitchen while they continued to watch television. I heard Jim chastising Greg.

"She sleeps in your bed with you?"

I didn't hear a response.

"That can't be wise. She's delusional. She thinks she's come back in time to save the human race. You really need to get her some help House. I can see that you're starting to get bored with her."

"I'm bored with everyone."

"It's a shame. She's really nice and pleasant to look at."

I heard nothing. I snuck back to bed and turned out the light. I didn't want to cry, but I knew that Greg was changing towards me.


	10. Chapter 6 Part 2 Rats

**Chapter 6 Part 2 -RATS**

**The next day I got up early and started the laundry. I checked on 101 and 102, the identification numbers I gave to my rats. I cleaned their cage and then fed and watered them. I went upstairs and heard the shower. Greg was up.**

**He came out to the living room. "Good morning. Would you like me to make some coffee or breakfast?"**

**"No, I need to get going." He grabbed his keys and took off.**

**I couldn't help but think that his whole demeanor had been brusque and cold to me. He usually asked me what I was going to do for the day, but hadn't.**

**I walked into the kitchen and realized that Greg had forgotten the lunch I had packed for him. I looked outside and the weather was reasonably warm for the beginning of March. I desperately wanted to get out of the house so I decided that I would take him his lunch.**

**Once the wash was done, I ran down and put the clothes in the dryer. I wanted to dry my new track suit so that I wouldn't have to wear the paint stained sweat pants. I rushed back up and got cleaned up. I combed my hair and looked in the mirror. I didn't have any makeup, so my eyes were rather blah. Still, I waited a few minutes and then rushed downstairs to get the dry clothes. I got dressed and realized that my shoes were still the cardboard slippers from the hospital. They were in very sorry shape and I thought that maybe I could pick up a new pair when I got there. I put on a pair of Greg's white socks, ten sizes too big and was ready to go. I grabbed his lunch and took off in the direction of the hospital.**

**I had to continually ask people along the road where the hospital was. I got a few odd looks because of my shoes and the fact that I didn't have a coat. I was in my track suit and I had grabbed one of Greg's throws from off the couch and was wearing it to keep warm.**

**I arrived at the hospital and went up the stairs to the second floor where Greg's office was located. I looked inside but the only person around was a young woman eating her lunch at the table in the adjacent office.**

**"Hello?" I smiled broadly.**

**She looked me up and down. "Uh, clinic is downstairs."**

**"No, I'm looking for Dr. House."**

**She looked back at her food and reading materials, "Dr. House doesn't see patients directly."**

**"Oh, I'm not a patient, I live with him." I said confidently. **

**Her head jerked back and she looked at me with round eyes and her mouth wide open. She eventually asked, "You live with him?"**

**"Yes. Do you know where I can find him, I have his lunch."**

**"He went down to the cafeteria with Dr. Wilson and Cuddy."**

**"Oh dear. I'm too late. Well, I'll drop it off and he can eat it tomorrow."**

**I asked where the cafeteria was and then made my way to the first floor. I walked in and looked around. I saw Jim first. He had already recognized me and was waving me over. Greg turned around and I saw him close his eyes in disappointment. There was a woman at his table too.**

**I went over to the table, "Hi."**

**Jim stood up to let me into the booth. "Marie, have a seat. Let me get you something to eat. How did you get here?"**

**"I walked."**

**I recognized the woman as the Mater, Lisa Cuddy, "You walked eight miles in those shoes and without a jacket?"**

**"It was fine."**

**Lisa smiled at me, clearly unnerved by my presence, "Last time I saw you, you were a patient. How are you doing?"**

**"I'm better, thank you."**

**"Where are you staying?" she asked.**

**I saw some hand movements from Greg, but I ignored them, "With Greg."**

**Her mouth dropped and she looked scathingly at Greg. "You're staying with Dr. House? In his apartment?"**

**"Yes. He did take me to a shelter, but he was kind enough not to leave me there. I try to earn my keep by cleaning house and cooking."**

**"Well, I'm sure it's been quite an education, living with House." she was shooting stern looks at Greg.**

**I saw a look of horror go through his face as he anticipated my reply, "Well, I guess I have learned a lot. He gave me different alcohol drinks to try and then he had sex with me, but it wasn't very pleasant. He informed me that it was because it was my first time, but I'm not sure."**

**His shoulders collapsed and he closed his eyes, waiting for something to happen. Lisa Cuddy turned to him, "House, can I speak with you?"**

**House looked over at me and gave me a look of disappointment. He left the room with Cuddy.**

**I turned to Jim, "Did I say something wrong?"**

**Jim looked like he was in pain, his mouth taught and his forehead wrinkled, "We don't normally talk about having sex in front of a group. Plus, House really shouldn't be having sex with you."**

**"Why? I was the one who suggested it? I'm an adult."**

**"Yes, but a doctor shouldn't take advantage of someone who's sick."**

**I shook my head, "I'm a doctor, I'm not sick. I'm not a patient."**

**He looked repentant, "Oh, I didn't mean to suggest..."**

**Greg came back into the room and said nothing.**

**I looked at House, "Let me explain to the Mater that I was the one who suggested the sex."**

**He sighed, "Please, you've done enough. Why are you even here?"**

**"I brought you your lunch." I held up the bag.**

**Jim looked at House and then back to me, "You walked eight miles to bring House his lunch?"**

**I shrugged. It did sound silly.**

**"House, why don't you buy her some shoes?" Jim asked.**

**House looked at him like he was a total idiot and then got up and left. Jim was embarrassed. He turned and gave me a sweet smile.**

**"Let me give you a ride home."**

**"Thank you. But I'd rather walk, could you please give him his lunch?"**

**He said very softly, "Sure."**

**I walked through Plainsboro towards Princeton, I had pinched a new pair of slippers before I left the hospital. These had a back to them and looked more like shoes. It had turned chilly and I rushed back to the apartment as fast as I could. I made dinner, but Greg didn't come home. I was tired from my sixteen mile hike and finally went to bed at 10:00 pm. I'm not sure when he finally got home because I didn't hear him come in. The alarm went off and I could feel him get up. I forced myself to get up and go out to the kitchen to see if he wanted anything.**

**Greg looked at me up and down, "You need to get a shower and get dressed."**

**"Are we going somewhere?"**

**"To the hospital."**

**I had a bad feeling about this, a very bad feeling. "Ok, I need to go downstairs and see if I left a pair of panties in the dryer. I'll be right back up."**

**I went down and took care of my rats, leaving them some extra food and water. I came back up, took a shower and dressed in the sweats since my new track suit was dirty and back in the dirty clothes hamper.**

**He drove us to the hospital in the sedan without saying a word. He was sullen, his brow slightly furred, his eyes slightly narrowed. We arrived at the hospital and he walked inside to his office without saying a word or acknowledging anyone. He picked up the phone and dialed someone. "This is House. We're here." He hung up, met my eyes briefly and then looked back down at his desk.**

**"Greg. Why am I here?" I asked.**

**The young woman that had been in the outside office opened the door, "House, Mr. Johnson was transferred to Dr. Jefferson's care this morning. His wife was down here wanting to thank you."**

**"Great." He said it facetiously.**

**The phone rang and House answered. He had a short conversation and hung up. He looked at me, "Come on, we're going upstairs."**

**I followed him as he pushed a button and waited for the doors to open. The two mechanical doors opened and Jim was inside. He looked surprised to see us.**

**"Where are you two going?"**

**Greg pointed up and then took his thumb and made a line across his throat. **

**Jim's face dropped. "I'll go with you. Good morning Marie, how are you today?" **

**I was starting to tear up. I was very afraid, but Greg wouldn't talk to me. I grabbed his sleeve, "Greg, why am I here? Where are we going?"**

**The doors closed and I realized I was in a transporter of some kind. We ended up on the fourth floor where we all got out of the transporter. I looked at the sign and saw, "Rehabilitation" with an arrow going to the right and "Psychiatric Ward" with an arrow to the left. We went to the left.**

**He finally said something, "The Mater says you need a psych evaluation."**

**He stopped. Jim and I followed both stopped too. We were all standing in front of two locked doors when two men opened them with a card. They were both rather large males and dressed in a green tunic and pants. They came out and, at first, gently took my arms. I turned to Greg, "Please Greg, why are men touching me? Please don't let them touch me." My voice started to waiver and I tried to not cry.**

**"Calm down. They're really teddy bears. They won't hurt you."he said.**

**I started to struggle, which I guess was the wrong thing to do because then they grabbed me tightly and started to drag me through the thick metal doors. I was terrified and kept crying out for Greg's help. He said and did nothing but watch as they dragged me through the locked doors and down the corridor. We went through another set of doors and I lost sight of him. **


	11. Chapter7 Part 1  Rats in the Freezer

**CHAPTER 7 - Part 1**

**RATS IN THE FREEZER**

"Damn it House, how could you do that to her?"

House bent down in Wilson's face and said in a slightly raised voice, "You're the one who told me she was delusional – crazy and needed help. I'm just doing what you and Cuddy told me to do." House didn't tell him that he also needed a break. She both attracted and repelled him. The statistics from Obstetrics had troubled him and made him suspicious of her. Was she playing him?

"But you could have at least told her what was going on. She was terrified. Didn't you see the look on her face? I've never seen anyone so scared and helpless."

"It's just a twenty-four hour observation. They'll let her out tomorrow. Hey, she'll get 3 square meals and a bed. What's so bad about that?"

They walked back to the elevator, "I take it Cuddy was upset."

"Yeah, a little more than upset. She told me that, for my own protection, I needed to get her evaluated and then find new arrangements for her."

"Well, that's probably good advice. Still, you could have prepared Marie for this."

"She'll be okay."

House spent the rest of the day in clinic and writing charts. When he left that evening, he arrived home and found the apartment quiet for once. He looked in the refrigerator for something to eat and found several containers with left overs that he heated in the microwave.

He had to admit that the place felt empty and lonely. But he also realized he was enjoying the quiet, being able to sit down and not have to listen to her chattering about things as inane as Soap Operas and Oprah.

When he went to bed, he purposefully scooted into the middle so that he could enjoy the entire bed. He turned over in bed and caught a wiff of her smell on her pillow. He thought about how frightened she was. He had thought it would be easier if she didn't know what was coming, but she was clearly frantic when they took her. He kept seeing her face and hear her crying out his name. He moved back over to his own side.

House got up the next morning and drove into work earlier than usual. He had received a call that he had a patient in critical condition. He and his team started reviewing the chart and he ordered tests. He had just dismissed the team to go run the tests when Wilson burst into the office.

Wilson took a deep breath, "I just rode up the elevator with Rodney Porter, the shrink doing Marie's evaluation. He said she has schizophrenia. They're already treating her!"

House threw the eraser at the white board, "Damn, I told them just to do the evaluation. Who gave them permission to treat?"

"I don't know, but she was struggling quite a bit so they gave her something to calm her down. Since she has no relatives, they treated her under the emergency act. They thought she might be a threat to herself so they started treatment."

House shook his head, grabbed his cane and went straight to the elevator and rode up to the fourth floor. Wilson followed. House grabbed Wilson's security card which was hanging on a lanyard around Wilson's neck and ran it through the lock. The doors opened and House went lumbering through the corridors of the psych department. He started looking through the small windows into each of the plain, light blue rooms. It was the only ward in the hospital that had real walls, not glass.

A nurse ran up to him, "Dr House? Can we help you?"

"Where's Marie Callahan?"

"She's down the hall in the last room on the right, do you want to speak to her doctor?"

He pushed the nurse to the side and started down the hall. The nurse ran to the nearest phone. House looked into the window and saw a ball with blonde hair rolled up on the unmade twin bed. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. One of the orderlies ran up to House.

"Open this door." House yelled at him.

"Dr. House, I can't do that."

House raised his cane, "Open this door!"

A voice from down the corridor called out, "Jake, open the door for Dr. House."

House and Wilson turned to see Dr. Porter coming down the hall. The orderly opened the door and House went inside. He sat down on the bed and pulled Marie's head from the ball she had formed. House opened her eyes with his fingers. Her eyes were glazed and she was non-responsive.

House looked at Porter, "Jesus Christ, you guys just can't resist making zombies out of your patients, can you?"

"House, she was delusional and hallucinating. She claimed that she was here to save the world from disease and that she was a doctor. She wanted to do experiments and was going to use her own blood to conduct them. She could have harmed herself."

"What did you inject her with?"

"She's on Thorazine and Resperidal."

He shook his head, "You had no authority to pump her full of crap." House looked at Wilson, "Get a wheelchair."

Porter shook his head, "You can't take her out of here, she needs treatment. We just need to balance her meds and she'll be able to function just fine."

"She _functioned_ just fine before you got your hands on her."

Wilson returned with a wheelchair and House poured Marie into it. Marie's head bobbed and fell back, her mouth open and drool spilled down.

House swallowed hard and gave Porter a dirty look. "You can stuff your evaluation up your ss...oh that's right, it's so full of crap I doubt you have room." House wheeled Marie to his car in the parking lot just as Cuddy was parking. She got out and ran over to House.

"What's going on? I just got a phone call from Porter...is that Marie?"

House was opening up the door to the car. "Yeah, this ball of drool is what's left of her after your Psych team got their hands on her."

"My God. What's she on?"

"Thorazine and Respiradal. Happy? I'm taking her home, tell my team to call me when the tests come back. I'll come back in when they do."

Cuddy just nodded her head.

House got home and pulled the wheel chair from his trunk and rolled her inside. He picked her up and dumped her on the bed. He went back to the hospital when the team called. Around 9:00 pm he drove home, opened the door to his apartment and went straight to the kitchen to pour himself a whiskey.

He turned and saw her standing in the doorway.

"I'm not crazy." she said firmly.

"I know."

"Why did you do it?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "Everyone said you needed to be evaluated." She stared at him. "Look, people don't travel through time. I don't know why you keep insisting on it, but people just don't travel through time. You may not be crazy, but you sound crazy."

"You don't believe me do you?"she said calmly.

"I'm not a seven year old. What do you want me to say? Gee Marie, you and Dr. Who are my heroes. Can I have a ride in your Tardis?"

"I don't expect you to say anything. But I have something to say. I'm a little groggy or I would do it now, but tomorrow I'm leaving. I'm afraid of you and what you'll do next. I can't trust you. You sent me to a homeless shelter with a bunch of drunks and mentally deranged people. Then you make me your personal slave, which I didn't mind since I needed a place to live and stay safe until they could trace me and pull me out. I did it because I thought I was safe here with you. But yesterday, I..." She started to cry.

"Oh, get over yourself. You're alive and you'll be safe now. Besides, where are you going to go? You have no money, you have no identification, no social security number."

"Social security number?" she stopped crying.

"You need one to get a job, to buy a car, to open an account, to take a piss."

"How do I get one?"

"You need your birth certificate."

"Birth Certificate?

"Do you always repeat everything?" He threw his hands up.

She clenched her teeth and her nostrils flared, "It doesn't matter. I'll be gone tomorrow."

"Great. I was wondering when I'd get my life back."

She turned and walked into the bathroom. He slammed his hand down. "Damn!"

They ignored each other for the rest of the night.

He woke with the alarm and looked over to her side of the bed. Her blonde hair covered the pillow as she lay with her back to him. He had the urge to kiss the slip of shoulder that lay bare. He thought that she must have eyes in the back of her head because she whipped her head around to look at him.

He jerked back and jumped up.

She sat up. "Can I take the sweat pants, sweat shirt and a pair of your socks?"

"You have the track suit. Why do you need the sweat pants?"

She just wanted a change of clothes, something warm to put over her track suit. She smiled at him."Fine, not a problem. Do you want the track suit back?"

He wanted to wipe the smile off her face. He thought about saying yes, but realized she would do it, give it back and then she'd have nothing. "No, it was a gift, you can keep it."

He walked over and grabbed a pair of socks out of his drawer, "Here." He threw them at her. "Better yet," He reached over and grabbed his wallet and threw her $20.00, "Buy some new sweats that fit you."

"I don't want your money." _I already have $212 of it._

"Keep it." He went into the bathroom and looked into the mirror and then said so that she could hear him. "If you need a coat or anything else, take it."

_That jerk, he would say something like that and make me feel terrible. _"Thank you."

After he left, she ate breakfast, went down to get her rats, came back and packed her plastic bag with the sweat shirt and the sweat pants, one of the ski hats he didn't use and then put the key on the table. She was scared, had no idea what to do next, but she kept telling herself it was just for a little while, she would soon be traced and transported home. It was just a matter of a few more days at most.

Mabel was frantic. "We need to get the gate up and running or the tracing liquid will wear off. We've got less than 24 hours and I won't be able to trace her. We'll have to send someone back to physically look for her."

"How can we do that? You said you sent her back to 2010, but with the power surge, she could be anywhere within a ten year period. We can't send someone to start looking from 2005 to 2015, it would take forever!" 47959 said.

23917 put a hand up to her head, "Well, if the tracer wears off, the only hope we have is that she triggers the account. We've gone back and provided an identity and money, but she needs to actually trigger the account to retrieve all of it. When she does we'll know where and when she slipped. We can leave her a message in the account, tell her to be at a certain place at a certain date. But, she hasn't triggered the account has she?"

Mabel shook her head, "Not yet. She knew the password when she left. The account name is her mother's name. Obviously, she can't remember it yet."

47959 looked down, "Or worse. She's dead."

There was silence in the room. 47959 nodded, "We need to consider that. Please start looking through history and see if there's any unidentified female bodies that show up in Princeton from 2005 to 2015."

Mabel and 23917 both nodded.

Marie walked towards Princeton University, unsure of where she was going or what she should do. She didn't know how she was suppose to find a place with just $212 and two rats. She realized that she had to find a safe place to put the rats until she could come back and get them. She took a stroll along the Princeton practice field and then under the bleachers. She found a spot near the utility unit. It was a little warmer than the surrounding area. She placed the rats near it to keep them warm. She watched as one of them started running on the wheel.

Marie started walking back towards an area of Princeton known for cheap motels. She found the Haliwell Inn which mournfully claimed to be the most reasonably priced hotel in town. She walked in and looked around. There were two metal chairs in the lobby and then a small caged reception area.

"Excuse me, how much are your rooms?"

The geeky looking clerk barely looked up at her, "By the hour, the day, week or month?"

"Uh, day and week."

"$38.75 a night. $240 a week."

"How about tonight, do you have a room?"

"I have one room, but it's being used right now. She has another twenty minutes. We have to change the sheets and then we could let you have it."

"Okay, can I leave my stuff here?"

"What stuff?"

She held up the plastic bag. "It's just this."

"Yeah – I guess."

She handed the bag to him and then left. She knew that she wouldn't last long on $232. She started to look for a job. She found a newspaper and looked at the want ads, but realized she did not have documents which would limit her ability to find a job. Marie was disappointed and depressed. She was cold too, so she decided to get a hot chocolate.

Marie went into a family café and sat at a table in the back. The waitress was having a hard time keeping up with the traffic and so it took some time before she came to take Marie's order. She ordered hot chocolate and a side salad.

As the waitress left, she spoke up, "Excuse me, do you know if they're looking for help here?"

The waitress looked her over, "We just had a waitress quit. I'll send the owner over."

After a few minutes, a man in a blue shirt stretched over a pot belly, came over. He had a kind, but haggard face. "You lookin' for work?"

Marie sat up, "Yes. I need a job badly."

He looked her over, "You ever wait tables?"

She lied, "Yes sir, several years ago when I was in college. I really need the job."

He asked her several questions and she was pleased when he smiled at her. She liked him, he seemed to be nice and fair.

"I need someone right away, are you available?"

"Yes, I can start right away. I just have one problem. I don't have a social security number or I.D."

"Wow, I can't hire you without a social security number. Can you get one?"

"My birth certificate will be difficult to get, the courthouse burnt down where I was born. I've been trying to get one for years."

He thought for a moment. "Look, my name is Joey, I can give you a few days work under the table in the back, but I need a social security card if you want to work for any longer." He paused and looked at her, "It's not legal, but I know a guy who can get you a birth certificate for $500. I can hold the job open for a few days, but you'd have to get a social security card as soon as possible."

"I'll do anything. Please give me the guys's name."

He wrote his name and address down. "If you want, I'll pay you $9.00 an hour to wash the dishes in the back."

She nodded and stood up to follow him.

Joey chuckled, "Finish your food and then come back."

She worked all day cleaning dishes. She was dead on her feet when she got back to the hotel. The clerk gave her the key and she walked the four floors up and opened the door. It had one window and a double bed with a red wool blanket with holes made by moths. It was a far cry from House's queen sized bed with the down–filled comforter. She put her plastic bag down and tried to turn up the heat, the room was cold. The knob wasn't budging, the room was as warm as it was going to get. She looked out in the hall and saw that the bathroom was at the end of it. She went down and found the seat up, urine stains around the sides.

"Men."

She called the number on the piece of paper that Joey gave her. "Hi, Joey said that I should call you. He said you could get me a birth certificate."

"Yeah, $500 in cash. I can have it for you the day after tomorrow. What name and birthday do you want on the birth certificate?"

"Marie Callahan, July 29, 1967."

"You have my address?" he asked.

"Yes."

"You can pick it up Thursday night, but you better have the $500."

"Okay."

Marie worked the back room again the next day. That afternoon when she got off, he gave her another $63.00 and a hot meal. She went back to the motel where she had paid for another night. She had just a little over $270. She needed at least $300 more so that she could rent the room again the next night and pay for the birth certificate. She knew what she had to do. It depressed her, but she knew her choices were limited.

House and Wilson had stopped by and bought pizza on their way back to House's apartment to watch the new episode of _Rescue Me. _They were arguing over who would win in a fight, Mackie from the Shield, or Jack Bauer from 24. House saw her first, he recognized the paint spattered sweat pants.

Wilson followed House's gaze and saw her too. She was standing, doing a little jig to keep warm. It was dipping into the low 30's. Wilson was freezing, he wondered how Marie was managing to stay warm. She had on a pair of sweat pants, sweat shirt and ski hat, but no jacket, no gloves and shoes that looked like, no– were– hospital slippers.

"Hi Marie, how are you?" Wilson smiled as he walked up onto the sidewalk holding a pizza.

"Fine Jim, thanks for asking."

House joined them cloaked in his long, warm wool coat, gloves and ski hat. "You didn't last long out in the real world."

"I'm just here to ask a favor." She looked away from him, embarrassed to have to ask.

"You need money." House said with a sneer.

Wilson moaned, "House, come on. Just listen."

"I need money to get a birth certificate so that I can get a social security card. Can I borrow $300? I promise to pay it back in a month."

He chuckled, "You're the one who thought you'd be able to survive in the real world. Go survive."

"Greg. Please. I really need this. I have a job offer, but I need a social security number." She continued to dance, trying to stay warm.

House looked at Wilson and then gave him the keys, "Get the pizza inside so it doesn't get cold."

Wilson frowned, but went inside. House looked at her. "Are you hungry?"

"No, I have to pick up the birth certificate in a few minutes." There was silence. Marie looked at the street lights and people rushing home in the dark. She looked back at House, "Well?"

"I can't support your illegal activities. You'll have to get your loan from your other friends. Oh! That's right, you have no other friends."

She shot him a look of contempt and took off without saying a word.

House yelled for her to stop, but she was already too far away to hear him. He knew right away that he had blown it. He should have given it to her, then she'd have to stop by to repay it. He went inside, took off his coat and gloves.

Wilson was putting the open pizza box on the table along with plates and two beers. "You gave it to her didn't you?"

House said nothing.

"Oh for God's sake House. She's waiting in freezing weather– who knows how long– in nothing but a pair of sweat pants, sweatshirt, and a ski cap. She's got nothing. Couldn't you loan her $300? You won't miss it."

House picked up a piece of pizza and started to eat it.

"I don't believe this." Wilson clenched his jaw, "You didn't loan it to her, did you? How could you do that?"

"If she can't buy her illegal documents, then she'll have to come back here and then she'll be safe."

Wilson gave him a pretend look of acknowledgment, "I'm sure she sees it that way" His pretense disappeared and he raised his voice, "Did it ever occur to you that she's got no place to live, no food, no money and the only thing stopping her from being able to take care of herself is $300? How do you think she's going to pay for it if you don't loan it to her?"

"Precisely, she can't, she'll have to come back here. She'll be warm and safe and I'll get my maid back."

Wilson was frustrated, "House, she's a woman. A pretty one at that, do you really think she won't find a way to get that document?"

House stopped chewing and looked intently at Wilson. "But she doesn't want to have sex."

"Yeah, well I bet she probably wants to eat more than she doesn't want sex."

House grabbed his keys. "Come on, we've got to find her"

"Sit down, you're not going to find her. It's dark and we don't know where she went."

House sat down, discouraged. "Damn."

Wilson shook his head, "You're a moron."

"No comment."


	12. Chap 7 Part 2 Rats in the Freezer

Breeder Chapter 7-Part II Rats in the Attic

Marie arrived at the townhouse and rang the bell. It was answered by a rather tall, but portly guy with glasses. He reminded her of a cartoon she had seen called Dilbert, "Did you bring the money?"

"I have $230."

He laughed at her, "We had a deal. Come back when you have the $500."

"I really need that birth certificate so that I can get a social security card. I have a job offer and they need..."

He nodded his head, "A social security card. I know the drill." He looked her up and down, " Well...there is a way."

"Yes?"

"We could go upstairs." he said it without inflection.

"Okay, what's upstairs? What then?"

Dilbert chuckled, "Then you take your clothes off and I get lucky."

She was beginning to understand. "You want me to have sex with you and then you'll give me the document?"

"You're brilliant. What will it be? Are you going to come back with the money or shall we go upstairs?"

She stood on the stoop wondering what she should do. If she didn't get settled, she wouldn't be able to start conducting research on the rats and she wanted to at least try to test the three she had before they pulled her. She needed a room and money for food. "Upstairs."

Dilbert led the way through stacks of papers and magazines. She looked at the threadbare rug on the stairs and thought of the gorgeous wool ones that covered House's floor. She was feeling a little sick, but she continued to make her way up the stairs. The guy opened a door and inside was a room full of DVDs, television equipment and, almost as an afterthought, an unmade queen size bed.

She waited to see what he was going to do. He grabbed a package from a dresser and then started taking off his belt and unzipping his pants.

"Come on Marie, show me what you've got." He made a motion for her to continue. She took off the sweatshirt, exposing her breasts. "Oh yeah, man, that's hot." He took his erection in his hand and motioned for her to continue. She took off the sweat pants and panties.

His voice went raspy, "Lay down."

She climbed up on top of the sheets. He dropped his pants and shorts. He touched her between the legs and smiled. Dilbert took the condom package, tore it open and dressed himself. He grunted as he pushed her legs open. He grabbed her hips and pulled her down a little so he wouldn't hit the wall with his head. He laid down on top of her, causing her to have trouble breathing. He stabbed her fast, causing pain to shoot through her as he tore tissue inside. She almost screamed out from the pain, but bit her cheek. He didn't take long, but it seemed forever to Marie. The smell of his sweat, his grunting and his roughness was making her want to throw up. She wanted it over. He stopped and rolled off of her.

She jumped up and put on her clothes. After a few minutes of trying to catch his breath, he finally got up and went downstairs. She gave him the $230, he gave her the birth certificate. By the end of the week, Marie had a social security number and she was gainfully employed at the _Good Eats Café_.

The _Good Eats Café _sits close to the Princeton University campus. It has cane back chairs, dark wood tables and the floor has large black and white tiles throughout. It has a small lunch counter and enough tables that the floor requires at least two waitresses per shift along with someone working the counter and register. Marie worked the night shift three days a week and the day shift two days a week. It seemed to her that Joey and the veteran waitress, Cassie, were always at the café. She had been there three weeks and it was rare that one of them was missing.

"Marie, sit down. Take a load off. You haven't taken a break since lunch." Joey pointed to the chair across from him and Cassie.

"Let me finish putting the napkins on the tables and I will."

Cassie frowned, "Come on Marie, you're making me look bad. Take a break before someone comes in."

Marie looked at the clock, it was 9:45 pm and they would be closing in fifteen minutes. She was tired. Her feet were aching, but comfortable in the new nurses shoes she had bought after Joey took one look at her hospital slippers and gave her $40 to go buy some new ones. Marie had come to appreciate all the clones who did manual labor in her time zone.

She sat down and Joey got up and brought her an orange juice, her favorite. "How you fixed for lodgings?" He asked.

"I'm still at the hotel."

"That area's scary, you need to find something else." Cassie commented.

Cassie was tall and thin with hair that was a mixture of blonde and light gray. It was held back in a bun with a hair net and pins. As the day went along, tendrils of hair would pull lose and hang down around her ears.

Joey thought about it, "I could ask my niece if she'd like a roommate. She has a small room over her garage, the bathroom is just off the garage inside the house, so you'd have a little trek to the bathroom, but it's in a better area."

"I'd like that, but I can't afford much."

"Well, you 've got to be paying over a $1,000 a month down at that rat trap. I'm sure she won't ask for that much."

"Thanks."

"Where did you live before?" Joey asked.

"I lived with a doctor from PPTH, but I found out that I couldn't trust him."

Cassie nodded, "He tried to get fresh with you?"

"Fresh?"

Joey laughed, he was surprised that, although Marie seemed very intelligent, she seemed somewhat naive. "She means that your landlord tried to have sex with you."

"Oh, we did have sex, once. It hurt and so I decided not to do it again."

Joey was a little shocked by how frank Marie was. It was as if she didn't understand the social niceties sometimes. In a way, it was refreshing. "He hurt you? Why didn't you report him to the police?"

"I don't think he meant to hurt me. He said it was because I was a virgin."

Cassie gave a nervous laugh of embarrassment and Joey turned red. Cassie nodded, "I remember my first time. It hurt so much I couldn't walk for weeks."

Marie sat up and looked at her. "So sex hurt the first time you had it too?"

Cassie was surprised, "Marie, it always does. It didn't get comfortable until I had been doing it for awhile." She looked at the way Marie was taking in the information and realized that she was still confused. "Marie, didn't your mother or sister or aunt tell you about this?"

"My mother was dead when I was born and I no biological siblings."

Joey chuckled, "Sometimes I have to laugh at the way you put things. It sounds like a text book."

Cassie assured her, "Sex is a lot of fun after you do it awhile. But you can't give up on it because it hurts the first few times. I'm curious, you're a little old to be a virgin. Were you a nun or something?"

She smiled, "No, there were just very few men where I lived."

Joey and Cassie nodded. A customer came in and Marie jumped up to wait on him.

Gregory House was still preoccupied. He had been collecting statistics from other hospitals in the Trenton and Princeton area and the birth rates and spontaneous abortion rates for males was similar throughout the county until you started getting further south. As you traveled further north-east, the statistics started to reach equilibrium. Females were as likely to be spontaneously aborted as males and the birth rates for both were close to 50-50. However, as he went south and west, the rates started to skew even more dramatically than in Princeton.

It hadn't been easy collecting the data, some of the hospitals refused to put it together for him, some already had it. Only one doctor mentioned to him that he had noticed the trend and was starting to become alarmed.

Since receiving the statistics at Princeton, House had been somewhat disturbed and preoccupied. There might or might not be something wrong, but how did Marie know? She had to have been connected in some way with the virus. Maybe she was a clerk at the CDC or some private lab. Who was she and why was she claiming that she was a time traveler? It had disturbed him and, as a result, he had turned cold towards her. He had felt like she was playing a game with him and not telling him the truth about who she was.

When House realized that she wasn't coming back, he spent hours looking for her. He'd get on his motorcycle and take off to a new area and then he'd walk, looking in shops, offices, restaurants. It was looking for a needle in a haystack. He wanted to make sure she was staying out of trouble and to see if she needed anything. This went on for over a couple of months and he was no closer to finding her than when he started.

It was the middle of May and Marie realized that the homing tag she had swallowed before her Survey was probably wearing off. If she let herself think about it, it depressed her. If she was going to have to stay in this time zone, she wanted to make the best of it and start conducting research. She knew that there was an account with money she could use. But she still couldn't remember the password. She had tried desperately to remember. She thought back to the day she left on her Survey. She could see Mabel at the controls reminding her of the password. But the numbers just wouldn't come no matter what she tried to do to jog her memory.

Marie was now staying with Joey's niece for $450 a month plus utilities. The room over the garage was nice, clean and spacious. It had been used for storage, but Debbie had cleaned it out for her and even transferred some of the furniture from her house to the room for Marie. Debbie loaned Marie a little overstuffed loveseat, a full bed, a two-drawer night stand, two lamps, and a chest of drawers. The room had a tiny kitchenette with a microwave on a stand. Marie found a used square table and two chairs which she purchased for $25 and carried upstairs. It provided her with a place to eat, work and sit to write up her reports and research. She had no entertainment — no television or radio– but she did have the rats. She frequently found herself watching them run on their wheel. It helped her concentrate.

Marie was ready to begin her research, but she needed a few things. She needed House's microscope and she needed reagents, slides and other equipment that she couldn't afford. She thought about asking James Wilson for money. But it had been Wilson who had urged Greg to get her "help" and she doubted Wilson would be willing to fund research into a virus he didn't believe existed. Greg may not believe her story about the future or the virus, but he might help just as a form of amusement. Marie had saved up some money over the last few months, about $489.It was only a tiny dent in the money she would need to conduct her research. She knew she needed more and the only person with more money and access to what she wanted was Greg House.

Marie had seen enough television and movies to know that if she wanted something from a man, she needed to flirt. She recalled Scarlet O'Hara scavenging and wearing drapes to meet Rhet Butler so that she could get money out of him. Marie was no Scarlet O'Hara, but she decided to borrow a page out of her book.

"Cassie, I need to go see an old boyfriend and I want to look nice. No, not just nice — I have to look irresistible. Can you help me?"

Cassie got up from the counter stool where she had been reading the paper after the diner closed. She looked at Marie as if she were a piece of clay she was about to sculpt.

"You're gonna need a dress, some sandals and some makeup. We need to go shopping. What are you doing tomorrow before work?"

Marie grinned, "Shopping with you."

They went to a local thrift store Cassie had frequently raved about and spent several hours looking at clothes. In Marie's time zone, clothes were put down a shoot and recycled. You never had to wear the same thing twice. Here, recycled meant that you sent them to a thrift store and someone else bought them, ripped, stained and buttons missing.

Cassie held up a silk sundress in tangerine. She made Marie go behind the curtain and try it on. It had a peasant gather at the bust that showed a lot of cleavage. The dress was a little snug around Marie's rear.

"Oh honey, that's not snug, that's sexy. It shows off that perfect little behind. This dress is absolutely perfect for your coloring and your little figure. You look hot. Now you need shoes to go with that."

Marie was surprised that the silk dress cost $12 used. She had hoped to spend less, but she figured Cassie must know what she was doing, she'd been married three times. Marie refused to buy used shoes. For some reason she just didn't like the idea of it.

They went to Payless Shoes and Marie found some gold sandals with a 2 ½ inch heel. They were easy to walk in and they looked good with the dress. On the way out of the mall, they stopped in at the Sally May store and bought some cheap makeup. Cassie and Marie talked about their day out during their shift. It had been fun and Marie had learned a lot about clothes from Cassie.

Both Cassie and Marie had Tuesdays off. Cassie drove over to Marie's room around 11:00 am and started to make her up. "Why do you want to look so good for this guy if you broke up with him?"

"I need something from him. He has a really nice microscope and I need it."

Cassie laughed, "You're seducing a man for a microscope? Now that beats it all. What are you going to do with a microscope?"

"Run tests on those rats."

"I wondered why you have rats. So you're a student?"

"No, I'm a doc...I was a doctor's assistant. He died and I want to continue his research." A lie was easier than the truth. Cassie seemed to buy it, but Marie hated telling it.

Cassie applied the foundation and smoothed it with a wedge. Then she applied the brown eyeshadow, deep brown eyeliner and brown-black mascara. She turned her attention to the lips and outlined them in an orange red and applied lipstick that was two shades darker than the dress.

Cassie arranged Marie's hair up, but let tendrils fall in the back and sides like gorgeous cascades of ribbon. She used the curling iron to make sure the tendrils stayed curled. Cassie smiled approvingly at Marie.

"I brought you some earrings I don't wear. You can have them."

Marie tried to put the earrings in, but the holes had started to close from not wearing any earrings for the last few months. Cassie got some ice from Debbie and reopened them with a needle. Marie put the earrings and her sandals on and turned to look in the mirror. She smiled.

"Wow. I can't thank you enough. I don't think I've ever looked this nice. Where I come from there's little reason to get dressed...dressed up."

"Well come on, I want to take you over for Joey to see you. He'll just die. Then I'll give you a lift so you can seduce this ex of yours."

"Thanks."

They drove over and Cassie went in through the back. She told Marie to come in through the front after she got inside. Joey was at the counter.

"Hey Cassie, what are you doing down here on your day off?"

She patted Joey on the back, "You know me, just can't get enough of the place."

The door opened and Marie walked inside. Joey looked at her, his forehead wrinkled and eyes squinted trying to place her. She walked towards the counter and then it dawned on him who she was.

"_Holy Mother of God! Marie, is that you?"_

Cassie and Marie laughed. Marie turned around to show him the entire outfit. Some of the regulars whistled and clapped.

"Girl, you are ..." He shook his head in amazement, "You are hot. What's the occasion?"

Cassie spoke up, "She has to seduce a microscope out of an old boyfriend."

Joey wasn't sure he heard right, "Well, whatever it is, if he doesn't give it to you, he's gay."

Marie shrugged her shoulders, "He's a tough nut to crack. He has gorgeous women throwing themselves at him all the time."

"Oh, not like you. You've got more than just looks." Joey said.

"Thanks Joey." Marie was still unsure of her feelings. Part of her still believed that men were subhuman. But since being in this time zone she had come to appreciate some of them for their intelligence, humor and kindness. But just when she'd start to think they were worth socializing with, one of them would do something stupid or violent and she'd wish they were all in their colonies.

"Come on Marie, I'll give you a ride over to the hospital so you can get your microscope."

Cassie dropped Marie off, "Do you want me to pick you up later?"

"No, I can take the 39 bus. Thanks so much Cassie, I appreciate everything that you did. I'll see you tomorrow."

Marie watched Cassie drive off in her Volkswagon Beetle. She turned and looked at the building, took a deep breath and began her mission. She walked inside to the clinic and approached the charge nurse who barely looked up at her.

"Excuse me, is Dr. House working the clinic today?"

The charge nurse barely looked over her reading glasses, "No, I think he has a patient. But it's lunch, he probably in the cafeteria stuffing his face with french fries."

'Thanks."

Marie walked down the hall of glass office windows. Several men smiled at her and she caught the reflection of them in the glass walls turning around to look at her from behind. Her ego boosted, she made the final turn into the cafeteria in search of her prey.

Once again she saw Jim first. He was seated at a table with a fruit salad in front of him. He did a double take and smiled brightly at her from the table where he sat. Greg wasn't with him. She looked around and saw Greg with a tray of food headed towards Jim's table.

Jim caught House's attention and nodded in her direction. House sat the tray down and turned to look along with most of the men in the cafeteria. He jerked back his head in surprise and his mouth pursed together in a little "o" from which he exhaled. He swallowed and waited, wondering what she was going to do.

She crossed the room towards them. Jim got up and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Marie, it's really great to see you. I've been worried about you.

"Thank you Jim, but I'm fine." She turned to Greg, "Hello Greg."

"Marie." He sat down, his eyes still fixed on her. "You look...healthy."

She chuckled, "Thank you. I'll take that as a compliment."

Jim pulled out a chair for her to sit. House looked around the room, giving the males a dirty look that told them to mind their business. Marie sat down and stole a french fry off of House's plate. She looked across the room and saw Dr. Porter. She was tempted to give him the finger. Instead, she smiled and nodded politely in his direction. His mouth was wide open in surprise, but he managed to nod back.

"Where are you living?" Jim asked.

"I have a room over a garage. The niece of my boss is renting it to me."

Jim looked at the silent House and then back at Marie, "Is the neighborhood safe?"

"Yes, it's just three blocks from the University. Nice neighborhood." She watched House concentrate on his food and do his best to ignore her. "How have you been Jim?"

"Fine, no complaints. Where are you working?" Jim took another look at House to see if he was paying attention.

"I'm a waitress at _Good Eats_."

Jim thought for a second, "I know where that's at, I've eaten there several times. The food's not fancy, but good. I usually go in when I've been at Princeton for a lecture. It's across the street from the campus police, right?"

She giggled, "That's the place. How have you been Greg?"

House just stared at her. Then he narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "You're not here to find out if I'm well. You want something. What is it? What do you want from me?"

She squirmed a little in her seat and bit her upper lip. "Uh, can we talk when you're done?" She didn't want to talk about her research in front of Jim. Since he didn't believe in _The Scourge_, she didn't want him to know what she was doing.

"Okay." he continued to eat his lunch. He grinned widely, knowing that she was there to ask another favor. The ball would soon be in his court.

Jim looked at his cell phone and the text message he had just received, "I've got to run, my patient in chemo is having a reaction. I'll stop in and see you at the café sometime. It was great seeing you Marie."

"I'd really like that Jim. Take care."

He jumped up and took off in the direction of the chemotherapy department. Marie turned and looked at House. He nodded towards the door, "Come on. Let's go back to my office."

They rode the elevator in silence, House not trying to hide the fact that he was ogling her. She looked up into his blue eyes and smiled as seductively as she could. He narrowed his eyes again and he pursed his lips in response to her smile. He was suspicious.

They got into the office and he put the sandwich down on the desk, turned and leaned back on the desk, his legs sprawled in front of him, his arms crossed over his chest. "Well?"

She didn't sit but walked around picking up things and studying them She finally looked over her shoulder at him. He was looking at her butt. "I need your microscope."

He wrinkled his nose, perplexed. "You need my microscope? What microscope?"

"The one under the bed in your room. It's the digital one that you had in the closet."

She could see it had dawned on him what she was talking about. "Why?"

"I want to start looking at the tissue of rats in the area to see if there's any signs of _The Scourge."_

"Why don't you buy your own?"

She turned and walked over to him. "You know I don't have the five thousand dollars to buy a microscope like that. What is it to you? You don't use it."

"But that's not all. You're going to need slides, sample squares, equipment to prepare the samples, a freezer to store them, reagents to test the samples. You're here to charm me into helping you." He had a smug smile on his face.

"Greg. This means nothing to you. But to me it means generations of people not dying and loved ones not suffering their loss. If you'd seen someone die of it, you'd help me." she put her hand on his forearm.

He looked at her hand on his arm suspiciously and she withdrew it. He rolled his eyes. "You are pathetic, aren't you?" He bent down and looked into her eyes, "Why should I help you? What's in it for me?"

She paused and drew in a breath, "I'd be willing to have sex with you."

He smirked, "Is that how you got your birth certificate?"

She drew back in shock. _How did he know?_ She regained her composure, "Does it matter?"

He shook his head, "Not really. I just never figured you for a prostitute."

She clenched her teeth and looked away. She could feel the tears of anger and embarrassment welling up. She held her chin up, "We all do what we have to do. You left me no choice."

He snickered, "You always had a choice, you just chose to be a whore."

"I'm trying to save billions of men and women. My reputation is the least of my worries. Well, do you want what I have to offer?" she put her hands on her hips and tilted her head.

He laughed at her and then went around to the drawer in his desk. He pulled out a small three ring binder and handed it to her. She sat down and looked through it for a few minutes. When she realized what it was, she looked up at him in horror, her face drained of color. "My God, it's here. We never thought it was this far back." She had to sit down, her knees were starting to buckle. The statistics she was looking at were clear to her. _The Scourge _had already started spreading.

"Greg, you have to believe me. I have two rats back in my room. I want to take tissue from them to see if they have anti-bodies to the virus."

"You better come with me."

She followed him to a lab. He went to a cabinet, unlocked it with his key and pulled out two boxes of slides. She saw that they were carefully numbered and stained. He handed them to her. She took them to a microscope and focused on the first one. She fell back into a stool. She regained her balance and looked at him.

"Do you know what this is?"she asked him.

He lifted his eyebrows, "The end of the world as we know it?"

She nodded.

"Oh, by the way. Thanks for leaving me a dead rat in my freezer. You should have seen the look on my face when I found it. At first I thought it was your way of saying, "Fuck you." But then I saw how carefully it had been preserved and wrapped and knew you had collected it for testing."

She started crying.

He raised his voice, "For God's sake, why are you crying?"

"You believe me."

He shook his head, "No, I don't believe that you came from the future, but I believe your story about this virus. It's something new and if it's responsible for the statistics in the notebook, then we're in trouble."

"At least you believed enough to research it. Greg, please help me."

She said it so sweetly, so innocently that he wanted to hug her and tell her it would be alright.

"You don't have to do your research elsewhere. I'll get Cuddy to hire you as a lab assistant. We can work on this together."

She was so relieved that she wanted to hug him, but she didn't. He was still the guy that had turned her over to the goons in psychiatry. She doubted she could forgive him for that. She soon realized that she would have to quit her job at _Good Eats _. It made her sad, she liked her friends and the regulars. But she had the human race to save. She had to set her priorities.

"Great. I have a social security card and I obtained a State Identification Card. I'm as legal as I can get."

"Well are you 123265 or Marie Callahan?"

"I went with Marie. Everyone kept forgetting my real name." She stared into his eyes and then grinned, "It's strange to think we might be working together."

He thought a second and looked disappointed, "You're not going to have sex with me now, are you?"

"I won't need your microscope."

"I think I just screwed the pooch."

"Uhh?"

"Nothing. I'll aim for you starting on Monday. I need to work on Cuddy."

"Your Mater is a strange one. She seems to do just about whatever you ask."

He wiggled his eyebrows, "I have that effect on women, can't you feel it?"

She giggled, "You definitely have an effect."

"I have to get back to my patient, why don't we have dinner and talk about what we do next. I'm new to all this. You can bring me up to date."

"Where should I meet you?" she asked.

"Mediterra in Palmer Square."

"I'm going to have to wear what I have on." she said.

"I was hoping you'd say that. You're a page turner."

She looked confused again, "I just don't understand you sometimes."

"Makes two of us. I'll make a reservation for 7:30 pm. Do you want me to pick you up?"

"No, I have to go to the library and do some research. I'll meet you there."

She didn't have any research to do, but she just didn't want House to know where she lived. She went home on the bus and hung up her dress so she didn't get it dirty. She sat down with the notebook that he had let her borrow and began to review the statistics in detail.


	13. Chapter 8 Part 1 Recombining House

**CHAPTER 8**

**RECOMBINING HOUSE**

I almost threw up when I read the statistics. I was pretty sure I was reading the primary evolution of _The Scourge_ before we had tinkered with it and made it recombine to evade our tinkering. I looked at the rats in the cage and thought how much I wanted to run a monoclonal antibodies test. It was a better way of identifying the virus genetic structure than the antiquated RNA profiling. The test directed the monoclonal antibodies against synthetic peptides of key regulatory proteins in the viruses. These antibodies identified novel proteins, which in turn, generated expression profiles. These profiles tell us the genetic makeup of the virus and it's possible future variants. In other words, it gives us the protein makeup of the virus and we can predict the variations it may take in the future.

Virus change and evolve rapidly. They do this by recombining and mutating. Simply put, when they recombine they enter the host's body, find another virus and the two buddy-up, share a few genes, especially ones that help the virus evade vaccines and drug therapies, and then jump into the new host. Influenza is the best example of this. The virus recombines with other influenzas and viruses to make new viruses on a monthly basis. Each year a new vaccine has to be developed to combat the new combination of genes.

In the case of _The Scourge_, I knew that it had recombined early on in its evolution with an influenza virus. Within three generations of this combination, it became a pandemic. I was probably staring at the pre-influenza strain of _The Scourge._ If that was the case, it would provide valuable information for us on how to stop it before it spread like wildfire.

I fell asleep and woke up around 6:20pm. I primped a little and then found the bus schedule. I had just enough time to catch the 6:45 pm No. 21 which would drop me off around 7:30 pm at Palmer's Square. I checked and I could grab another bus back at 9:20 pm or the last one at 10:10 pm

It was a little chilly out and I was grateful that Cassie had talked me into buying a little white cardigan. I put it on and grabbed my wallet. I caught the bus and arrived a few minutes before 7:30 pm. Greg was already waiting for me at the bus stop. I felt like an excited child, getting my first ride on a porta-coaster. He looked good for a male. He had on a pair of tan slacks and a deep blue shirt with a collar that Joey called a Polo shirt. Over it was a blue sport coat. We went inside and I was struck by how different the restaurant was to _Good Eats._

It had dark round table with padded chairs and those lights that look like horns and hung down from the ceiling. There was an abstract work of art on the wall that had red, yellow and gray swirls to it. Everything looked clean and contemporary, similar to what I would find in my time zone. It wasn't as relaxed as the _Good Eats_. The decor made you want to keep your voice down. But it was beautiful and the menu looked enticing. I was impressed.

"Greg. Don't feel bad if I don't eat, okay?"

"Why? Don't you feel well?"

I looked sheepishly around, "I just can't afford these prices. But I can order a bottle of water and you can eat."

He rolled his eyes, "I asked you to dinner as my guest. Order anything you want, as long as it's less than the national budget. I'm paying for it."

I sat back and looked at him. He was being very nice to me and that always sent off warning signals. I leaned forward, "_Why are you being nice?"_ I asked rather sharply.

"Because I want you to like me. If you like me, you might let me kiss you and feel your breast later."

I guess I must have just stared at him because he finally leaned forward too.

"I'm just joking. I know I screwed you over and if we're going to work together, we need to at least be talking to each other."

I turned serious, "I'm a professional, I would have talked to you."

"Well, I wouldn't have talked to you. But now I will. So, you see? This dinner is working."

I was confused again. But I had learned that, while I was in this time zone, there were a lot of things that I wouldn't understand and Gregory House topped the list.

The waiter took our orders and then he turned back to me. He looked down at this place setting, took his napkin and placed it in his lap. "Tell me about your job? Do you like it?"

I told him about being a waitress, what I did and who the regulars were. I talked non-stop about how much I appreciated Joey and Cassie and what they had done for me. The waiter brought us our food and we began to eat.

"Before we discuss _The Scourge,_ tell me about yourself. Where were you born? What were you like as a kid? What were your parents like?"

I really wanted to get down to business, start talking about the virus. But the bottle of champagne he had ordered and the two glasses I had were having their effect on my thinking. I went along with him.

"I was born in the Roseville Facility for Breeding in Roseville, Ohio. I was transferred immediately to Lancaster, Pennsylvania for indoctrination and grooming. I stayed in Lancaster for ten years and then was sent to boarding school in Philadelphia at the Wanamaker School for Breeders. When I was 17 I was transferred to Harvard where I majored in Genetics and then I went to medical school at Johns Hopkins. I stayed at Hopkins to do my internship and to get a specialty in Genetics and Epidemiology. After that I joined TOP and I've been a Surveyor since then."

He shook his head as if he had heard too much. "Back up. What is the Roseville Facility for Breeding? And what exactly is a breeder?"

"A Breeding Facility is where ovas are fertilized and maintained until they are viable, which is usually around the 40th week. Once removed, we call them "Babies" and, if the baby is a breeder, she's transferred to a breeder farm to be raised. Breeders are those female babies that are determined at birth to be able to reproduce. We keep the world alive. When we finally menstruate, our menstruation cycles are controlled to produce the maximum amount of ova that are then harvested on a quarterly basis. My ova are fertilized by male breeders from male colonies around the United States and my babies are used to keep the gene pool and human race alive."

"What is a male colony?" He asked.

"After _The Scourge_ killed off most of the males, the remainder did not act in the best interest of society. They wouldn't allow a scientific distribution of their sperm to keep the gene pool diversified. The were indiscriminately having sex. In addition, they were having power struggles all over the world and inciting the clones to rebel against the female breeders. We passed an act and placed all males in colonies with a fifty mile perimeter around them to keep the males in and curious females out. The colonies are typically located around areas that have hard labor as part of the economy. Such as mining. Most mining is done by machine, but occasionally it requires a strong back and, well men tend to have strong backs."

"Your father was a male breeder?"

"My father was one of the few male breeders that was allowed to work in the administration of the colony he lived in. I actually got to meet him once. He had a wonderful vocabulary for a man and sounded almost intelligent. I think he wanted to hug me, but of course, that wasn't allowed. They had to restrain him."

I had been talking non-stop and then I realized that he looked sad and disappointed. "What's wrong?"

"You sound so sane most of the time." he was shaking his head.

I hated him. He let me go on, knowing he was thinking I was crazy the whole time. "You know, if you're not going to believe me, why ask?"

"I keep hoping one day you'll wake up and say, "I was born in Toledo, Ohio. I have two brothers and my parents are retired. Growing up I had a dog, a cat and a canary. I went to Lincoln elementary and Morse High School. You know, something like that."

"Okay, you've got me. My mother was a homemaker, my father worked as an accountant in an office. I have a sister named Ida and a brother named Paul. I had a cat named Tulip and a dog named Katmandu."

House looked at me sideways. "Really?"

"I have a dog named Katmandu, the rest is my fertile imagination."

"Who names their dog Katmandu?"

"I do. He's a mutt. He's probably hungry by now." I started thinking outloud, "Nah, Mabel would take care of Katmandu. She loves animals."

"Mabel?"

"The Gatekeeper."

He shook his head in frustration at me, "This sounds like a horrible computer game. Why does Mabel get a name instead of a number?"

"Breeders can take names or identification numbers, they decide when they turn fifteen."

"Why would you take a number?"

"Numbers are assigned as part of your value classification. My number is in the one hundred thousands, one of the lower ones, that means I have a high value."

"How lovely for you."

"Why ask me questions if you don't believe me?"

"It's fun to watch you come up with these fantasies."

I jumped up. I was so angry I was close to tears, "Thank you for dinner. I need to catch a bus." I practically ran out of the restaurant and down to the bus stop. I had left so quickly that I forgot my sweater, I was cold and I was angry and I had half an hour before the bus came. I felt like walking so I stood up and was about to take off in direction of my place, when I was stopped by a hand wrapping around my arm.

"Do you know how hard it is to pay a bill and run after a fleeting woman when you're a cripple? Come back in, let me buy you a drink. I promise I won't make fun of you." He looked contrite, almost forlorn.

"Gee, can you also promise you'll believe me?" I asked, my jaw locked and eyes narrowed.

He looked away and then back and shook his head "no."

_At least he's telling the truth._ I looked at him and then shrugged my shoulders, "I forgot my sweater."

"Come on, let's go get it." He took off his sport coat and put it over my shoulders to keep me warm. We walked back in silence to the restaurant. They had my $1.75 thrift store sweater at the hostess desk. I gave Greg back his coat and put it on.

"This didn't go the way I wanted it to." He said as we stood outside.

"How did you expect it to go?" I asked.

He snickered,"I saw you laughing at my wit and me charming the panties off you."

"Sex? Do you always see us ending up having sex?" I folded my arms across my chest.

"I have a reputation, I can't have you always telling everyone I was lousy in bed." he said with a look of innocense.

I looked away and shifted my weight, "No, I know better. I now know that it hurts the first few times. Cassie told me that you were telling the truth. I wasn't fair to you. But, I honestly didn't know it hurt when you first did it."

We were walking in the direction of Greg's car. "How old are you?" he asked.

"Forty-nine." I said.

His eyes flew open and his body jerked back. He was stunned.

"How old did you think I was?" I asked rather disturbed by his reaction.

"Thirty, maybe thirty-two, but not forty-nine! Wow."

I thought a minute and then nodded, "That's right, your life span is still below 100 isn't it? You're not going to believe me, but we live to be 130 on the average. The Breeders don't go through menopause until sixty-five to seventy years old. It seems one of the benefits about developing an immunity to _The Scourge_ is that we live substantially longer and are healthier."

I could tell he was trying not to show what he felt, that he didn't believe me, at least not now. I was convinced that once we started working on the virus, I could demonstrate to him what I was saying was true.

He turned to me and put his arms around my waist and pulled me close. I looked up at him, not really understanding what he expected me to do. "I have a thing for older women." he said.

"Really? How old are you?"

"Forty-eight."

It was my turn to be shocked, "Forty-eight? I thought you were older than that!"

He laughed, "Gee thanks."

"I...I just...you just look older than people in my time zone who are in their late forties. You're still quite good looking."

He bent down and put his lips over mine, sticking his tongue inside my mouth and feeling around. I was both excited and repelled by this. My body wanted to respond, but my mind was crying out that a male was putting his tongue in my mouth! He finally pulled back.

I looked down, embarrassed, "I don't really know what I'm suppose to do."

"You did fine. Let me give you a ride home." he pulled me a little closer our groins touching.

I still wasn't sure that I wanted him to know where I lived. "No, let's go to your place. I can get a bus in the morning." I pulled away and looked up into those eyes of his. A smile crept across his face and then quickly disappeared. I had to smile to myself. He was happy and for some unknown reason, it made me happy.

We arrived at his apartment and he opened the door for us. I took off my cardigan and he hung up his sports coat. I walked around and looked at the things in the living room. It felt good to be here again, I felt comfortable. I turned to look at him and my heart did some kind of flip and my body flushed. He was standing there, blue eyes watching me, his hand still on his cane and the other in his pocket. I realized that there was something primal about him that made me feel off-centered. But, he didn't move. He seemed almost shy, like he wasn't sure what to do next. We were a pair, both of us unsure of how to approach this.

I realized that I was the female and had a duty to take the lead. Males frequently need coaching. I remembered in one of the porn movies we watched that the woman slinked across the room, dragging her hand across the furniture and licking her lips. I started to mimic the woman. I took my hand and ran it across the back of the leather couch. I licked my lips as I did it. I saw him start to chuckle at first. He put his hand over his mouth, but he couldn't contain himself, He began to laugh.

He shook his head, "I'm sorry, I just remember you and I sitting and watching _Debbie's Training Day _where she did the same thing."

I was almost humiliated, but I realized he didn't mean it to be cruel. I broke up laughing too and we ended up falling on the couch together. I crawled up to him and he held me in his arms. I know it sounds crazy, but no one had ever really held me like that before. I felt safe and happy all at once. He scooted down so that his face was level with mine and we looked at each other with big grins.

He grabbed my chin and started by kissing my eyes and then slowly kissed my nose and then my lips. His tongue was back in my mouth, exploring and tickling. I giggled and he chuckled back.

"Let's go back to the bedroom." he said.

"Okay."


	14. Chapter 8 part 2 Recombining House

_Caution-Explicit Sexual Content-_

We sat up and he grabbed my hand in his and gently pulled me up. We went slowly back to his bedroom smiling at each other. When we got back in the bedroom he turned on the bedside light. I took off my shoes and climbed up on the bed, curled up by the pillow and watched him take off his shoes and pull off his polo shirt. The hair on his chest was curly and gray although a few of the strands were brown. He stood up and undid his belt and unzipped his pants. His trousers fell to the floor and he stood in his boxers. I got up on my knees and turned my back for him to unzip me. He unzipped my dress and then pulled the pins out of my hair, letting it fall. I pulled down the dress and threw it on the floor next to his trousers. He looked at my half-naked body. I felt a little shy and exposed, something I hadn't felt in my life. He pulled the covers back for me to climb under. I pulled off my panties first and climbed in. He crawled under too and I could immediately feel his warmth.

I drew in a breath and could smell Greg's body odor. It was familiar and pleasant. I could have smelled him all night and day. He put his arm under his head on the pillow and looked at me. His face turned gentle and he ran his hand down my shoulder and over my breast. He took his thumb and rubbed my nipple. He looked under the covers and stroked the inner part of my thigh. His touch felt soft and velvety. I was worried that I wasn't doing things right so I reached down and softly stroked him too. His breathing picked up, closed his eyes for a minute as I played with him. The he pulled my hand away and picked up the covers.

I was a little surprised when I saw his head disappear under the covers. He gently pulled my legs apart and spread my fold even further with his fingers. I felt his warm, wet tongue touch me as softly as a feather at first and then more firmly. It felt almost like a tickle at first and then his tongue went flat, licking up over and over. My breath quickened as I felt myself get wet and warm. Then he concentrated on the one area that was the most sensitive. He licked and sucked me with a rhythm that made me push my body into his tongue. This went on for a few minutes until I felt his finger dart in and out of me while his tongue continued its steady rhythm.

I wasn't myself, I was quickly losing control over my body. The tingling started deep in my pelvic area close to where his tongue was licking. He started to suck and I screamed. I didn't mean to, but it was too much. I couldn't concentrate on anything but the feelings that were exploding over and over. My muscles contracted so hard I could feel nothing else. It was the most glorious feeling I had ever had and as it started to disappear, Greg raised up, grabbed a rubber and put it on.

"I'm going to enter you, okay?"

My breathing was still fast. I nodded, "Yes, I'm ready."

He entered slowly and gently. He made no sharp moves. It was so tight that he sometimes grunted when he pushed into me. It was uncomfortable, but it wasn't painful like before. I didn't really care after the wonderful sensations I had just experienced. When he was finishing, with three short thrusts, I kissed him on my own. My tongue was the intruder and he moaned lightly into my mouth as it came to an end.

I understood now. I knew why sex was so popular. I wanted more. Not just then, but I knew I was going to want more later. He was breathing hard as he laid there on his back. I put a hand on his chest and watched it rise and fall as he gained control over his breathing.

He turned to me, "Are you okay?"

"I owe you an apology. That was the most glorious feeling in the world. I can't thank you enough."

He was clearly happy and satisfied. He smiled broadly and pulled me up to his chest. I put my head on it and could smell his sweat and hear his heart beat. I ran my hand down his abdomen and along the patch of hair that ran from his navel to his genitals. It was so sensual. I wanted to stroke the patch of hair over and over. He giggled.

"It tickles. Touching right after sex can tickle."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, I won't mind it in a few minutes. I just want to lay here and make sure you don't get yanked back to your time zone. You better stay close."

"You're teasing me, but someday you'll be sorry."

He chuckled and reached over to grab a glass of water. "Want some?"

I nodded and took a drink. He did too. He moved down further under the covers so that his head was on the pillow next to my head. He turned on his side and grabbed me around my waist. I turned over with my back to him and we laid together, falling asleep like that.

He woke up to go to work and kissed my neck. "I have time for another round. Are you up for it?"

"Yes, please."

He was genuinely pleased. I was very happy. It felt as good as the first time although maybe not as romantic. I watched him get up and take a shower. "Want to join me?" he yelled from the shower. I slipped into the shower behind him and we played with each other, splashing water, soaping each other and kissing. We spent far too much time in the water, but we laughed the whole time.

He offered me a ride home, but I knew he was late. "I'll get a bus."

He got out his wallet, "Take a cab so that I know you'll get home safe, okay?"

I nodded.

"And here, keep this." He handed me my old key to the apartment.

"What is this for?"

"You use it to unlock the front door."

I snickered, "Very funny. I don't live here anymore, why are you giving me a key?"

He shrugged, "I want you to be able to make yourself at home."

I was about to say something, give it back. But I could see he really wanted me to have it and if it would make him happy, I thought it was the least I could do. I kissed him and sent him on his way. I took a cab home, washed my uniform and made my way into work. I was almost late, causing both Joey and Cassie to wonder what had happen to me.

"I went to dinner with the doctor."

Cassie was pleased, feeling as if she had been a catalyst, "I knew he couldn't resist that dress and body."

Joey agreed, "He'd be an idiot if he did. So are you two back together?"

"I'm not sure. I stayed the night with him and he gave me a key to his apartment."

Cassie and Joey nodded to each other.

"He also offered me a job as a lab assistant. It comes with health benefits and a substantial pay raise. I'm sorry Joey, but I said yes."Joey was clearly upset and I felt guilty. I couldn't take it. He had been so good to me. "Forget it Joey, I won't take the job."

"Are you kidding? You have to. I'll miss you, but health benefits and a pay raise? You can't turn that down. Hey, just promise you'll come down and see us."

I still felt horrible. I went over and hugged him. He hugged me back. I couldn't believe that I had started voluntarily hugging men. My life had taken a 180° turn and I was a man-friend. One of those stupid women who believe that men actually have something to offer the universe.

I worked the full day and was surprised when Cassie called me over to the cashier's desk. I had a phone call. I was very tentative. I'd only used a phone a few times and I was still unsure of how to use it properly. I wish they had communicators. You just hit the chip in your arm and you could communicate using your own mind to dial.

"Hello?" I said, making sure I had the earpiece to my head and the speaking part by my mouth.

"What are you wearing?" he asked.

"That's an odd question to ask." I said to him.

He chuckled, "I knew you wouldn't get it. I don't know why I even said it."

"Greg, I have to get back to my customers, what did you need?"

"I wanted you to come over tonight. I'll pick you up."

"I don't get off until late and by then, I'm really tired. I don't think so."

There was silence. "Okay, what about tomorrow night?"

I was amused, he was very persistent. "I'll come over on Friday night. I work the day shift then. Did Cuddy say yes?"

"Yeah, but your salary and the research has to come out of my department's budget. So I can't afford to pay you a lot. You'll get $17.67 an hour."

"Well, we can talk about it on Friday." I suggested.

"Okay. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Bye."

"Bye."

I looked at the phone and wondered why he needed to call me the next day if we were going to see each other on Friday. I didn't understand the people in this time frame. I went back to work.

That night a tall man in sunglasses and a ball cap walked in and took a table over in Mary's stations. At first I didn't think anything of it, but he kept staring at me over the newspaper.

"Greg?" I yelled across the restaurant. He pulled his newspaper up over his eyes. I looked at Mary, who was shrugging her shoulders. I went over and grabbed the paper out of his hands. He looked around and then up into my eyes. "Take those stupid things off."

He took off the sunglasses and, without smiling, put them on the table. Mary came over. "Is this guy stalking you Marie?"

"Stalking? No he's just following me everywhere." I said.

Mary looked at me strangely. "Do you want Joey to kick him out?"

"No, he has enough money to pay for a meal. He's the doctor I slept with last night."

I could see she was shocked, "Uh, okay. I think I'll just leave you two alone. She went to get food for one of her tables.

"What are you doing?" I sat down across from him.

He looked around again rather sheepishly, "I have to eat. I might as well eat here."

"But it's five miles from your apartment."

"I was in the neighborhood. Aren't you happy to see me?"

I thought about it and I wasn't. I felt like he was checking up on me, as if I couldn't be trusted. "No, I'm not. I feel like you don't trust me and are sneaking around trying to catch me doing something."

His shoulders collapsed and his face fell, "I ...I just wanted to see you tonight. I was curious. I wondered if you were a good waitress."

I looked around, "Well I won't be if I don't get back to it. You timed it just right, I get off in fifteen minutes. You might as well have your dinner and then you can wait with me at the bus stop."

"I'll take you home."

"Waitress!" a customer signaled for the check.

I raised my hand to acknowledge them and ran off to get it. I looked back and saw him order his meal from Mary. Mary was a cute, young student with big dreams. Joey called us his M&Ms when we were working. As I finished up, I grabbed my cardigan and purse, walked to the front, watched as he left enough money to pay for the meal and give Mary an excessively large tip. We walked outside, the air was close and smelled like ions from a maxator. It smelled like rain coming.

He walked next to me, saying nothing. The sides of our bodies occasionally brushed up against each other and I got the distinct feeling that the touching wasn't an accident. He kept swinging his arm behind me cautiously until he finally reached up and put his hand on the opposite shoulder. I stopped and turned slightly to look at him and the arm that was now draped around the back of my shoulder. He pulled it off quickly.

"Greg, are you touching me as a prelude to sex?" I wasn't angry, just curious. I had seen people with their arms around each other and wondered what it meant to them.

"Not necessarily," he said defensively.

"Then why did you touch me?"

He scratched his head. "People, couples, frequently touch just to be close to each other." He nodded towards the parking lot. "Let me drive you home. We can talk on the way."

"I haven't told you where I live because I'm afraid you'll do what you did tonight, show up all the time, even if I say no."

His lips pinched together and he moved them around like he was embarrassed. "I worry about you. I don't know if it's the schizophrenia or what, but you seem naive, like you've been sleeping in a cave most of your life. I keep thinking of the Kirby Deluxe 6000 and the pimp who tried to hustle you."

"I don't have schizophrenia. We've cured it in my time zone. I'm starting to understand your society. I've learned the bus system, the social security system, the tax system– which is archaic – and I'm learning about sex. The only thing that still baffles me is the relationship between men and women, what you refer to as love. What is love and what function does it perform?"

House grimaced, "You're asking me to explain emotions and I have a hard time explaining it to myself. You know, asking me about love is like asking George Bush to give you a cogent answer. You're asking the wrong person."

I exhaled in frustration, "Have you ever been in love?"

He winced and ducked like he knew what was coming, "Yes."

"Then explain it to me. How did you know that you loved her? I assume it was a woman – right?"

He was very defensive, "_Yes, it was a woman!_ I knew I loved her when I didn't want her to go home. I wanted her to stay with me. I didn't want to be with other women. I was happy when I saw her. I looked forward to her coming through the door. I don't know. It's different for everyone."

I looked at the wrinkles around his eyes and touched his elbow, "Is it true you only love one person in your life?"

He shook his head, "No. I've been in love a few times, but the last time was probably the one that hit me the hardest when it was over."

"Over? I thought love was suppose to last forever?"

He looked down and away, "So did I."

I felt sorry for him. He must still love the woman. "You still love her, don't you?"

He squirmed a little, "Yes, but it's over. She's married.."

"To someone else?" I was surprised. "Didn't she love you?"

He looked annoyed, "It's complicated."

"I know Calculus, regale me."

"Can we go to your place? Or mine? It's dark and it's late. It might be wise if we didn't advertise ourselves as marks."

"Okay, we can go to your place again. I don't have to work until noon."

We got into his car and he tried to talk to me about the new job at the hospital. "Oh no. You aren't going to distract me that easy. I'm not a man. Did she love you?"

"She loved me, but after my leg problems, we'd fight and then we'd ignore each other. It got to the point that the only thing left in the relationship was love and pain. Loving someone doesn't mean you can live with them or make them happy."

"This is complicated." I was quiet, trying to think, "I watch movies and people seem so miserable when they're in love."

"It's a complicated emotion. It can make you the happiest you've ever been and the most miserable you'll ever be."

"I think I like my world. We all care for each other deeply, but there is no love between the sexes. It makes life easier to deal with."

His mouth turned down and his eyes looked sad, "I think I'd like your world too."

"No, you'd hate it. Women would tell you what to do all day and punish you if you didn't obey."

"So what's new?"

I giggled. "You'd be put in a colony. With your leg, you'd probably be given an office job like bookkeeping or filing."

"Yeah, I'd hate it."

We arrived at his apartment. When we got inside I sat down on the sofa and he brought me some orange juice.

"Greg, do you want to be in love again?"

He threw his head back onto the back of the sofa and rolled his eyes. "Can we talk about something else?"

"I came here to get answers. If you don't want to give me answers, give me money for a taxi and I'll leave." I wasn't going to let him get away with ducking the question.

"I don't know. That's the honest truth. I don't think I could handle the pain again of her leaving."

"Do women always leave the relationship?"

"Mine do."

I laughed, he looked so forlorn. "Oh, don't pout. Maybe next time you'll leave."

"I doubt it. When I fall in love I tend to stay to the bitter, and I do mean bitter, end."

I couldn't imagine why someone would leave him. He was difficult, but I lived in a society of women and frankly, they can be difficult. Compared to them, he was just a child who needed his hand slapped every once in awhile. He could carry on an intelligent conversation, knew a lot about a lot of things, played music, and could make me laugh. It sounds silly, but making me laugh was important to me. He probably didn't think I was funny because I was having such a hard time understanding what was considered funny in 2007. But in my time zone I was considered a real comedian. I made all of my friends laugh.

I patted his hand, "You know, if I planned on staying, I'd fall in love with you and never leave you."

He chuckled, "You moron. It's not that easy. You don't just say it and it happens. You either grow to love a person or you're gobsmacked ...you love them at first or, almost first, sight."

I was a little miffed. I had just tried to compliment him and he made me feel like I was a child. "Well what's so hard? When I stayed here with you, I looked forward to you coming home, I didn't want you to leave, I was happiest when you were around. Isn't that love?"

He scrunched his forehead and mouth up, like he was in pain. "I don't know. Only you know when you're in love with someone. It sounds to me like you were just lonely."

I figured he must be right, "Oh. I see. Then you're right, I don't know what love is. I guess, if I'm lucky and I get to go home soon, I never will. I'm really tired, can I take a shower and we go to bed?"

"Sure."

His answer was a little too enthusiastic. I think he was grateful that he didn't have to talk about love anymore. He got into bed while I took a shower. When I came back to bed he had an erection.

"Are we having sex again?"

He nodded.

"How often do you have sex?" I asked.

"Not often enough."

I gave him a look of reprimand.

"You can have it several times in one night as long as the guy can get it up." He saw my confusion, "As long as he can get an erection. Most couples have sex ..."He stopped and looked at my naked body, "...six or seven times a week." I saw a slight upturn of his lip which indicated to me that he was lying, but it didn't matter. I had seen in the porn movies that they did it more than six or seven times a week. But, I thought six or seven times a week was a reasonable quantity.

We had sex and this time I had an orgasm, but Greg didn't use his tongue, just his fingers and I had it while he was inside of me which must have been intense because Greg yelled out like he was in terrible pain.

I got up and watched him flush the rubber again. I looked at it and realized it contained millions of humans in it that were just being flushed away. I wanted to grab it and try to take it home with me. But he told me later that there was a spermicide laced into the condom and most of the sperm were probably dead. We highly prize sperm in my time zone. Sperm are more precious to us than any gemstone or mineral. Watching them just float away made me very sad. I wondered what it would be like if the governors could fertilize one of my ova with one of his sperm. I thought of the genetics. The baby would be very smart, perhaps 5'10"-5'11", blue eyes, brown hair as adult, long fingers, and longer features than I had. The clones would be intelligent too. That made me even sadder, to know that those babies would never exist to save my world.

I'm not sure how it happened, but over the next four nights I only spent one night at my apartment, alone. He always had something to show me or for us to do. We always ended up in his bed. We even went to bed one night and didn't have sex. I was beginning to think that he wanted me to live with him again. I didn't want to do that. I didn't want to be his personal maid or give him the impression that I was his property.

Monday came. I was excited about starting my new job at PPTH. I spent the first couple of hours watching a training film on safety and patient privacy and filling out forms with Greg's help. The forms asked for my previous employers and since I had only worked one place, TOP, it was easy. But when I put down the address, Stratos 7, Avenida Cielo, Philadelphia, Commerical Level 2, he shook his head.

"Just put that they've gone out of business. They're not going to understand why they can't find your employer to get a reference...not that it matters, I'm the one doing the hiring."

Listing my education was even more difficult. Greg said I couldn't put most of it down or they would contact the institutions and ask for confirmation of the information. Although I knew he was "playing along with me" he said, "How can they confirm something that hasn't happened yet?"

He had a point. I ended up just putting down a lie, that I had gone to high school at Morse High in San Diego, CA. He said that he had gone to that high school and knew that it existed, but that they wouldn't be able to confirm my attendance because in 1988 there had been a fire at Morse and their records had burned up. It was before computers and the internet stored everything in cyberspace. The human resource clerk gave me papers to read later which welcomed me to PPTH.

Greg took me to his office and gave me some instructions. "You're low man on the totem-pole..." He saw that I wasn't following. "You're the last to be hired so you have no seniority. That means that you have some chores the others don't. You'll be responsible for making and getting me my coffee and doing other tasks just for me. And when you refer to me at work, you must call me Master."

"Master?"

"It's because you're new. When I hire someone else, then they'll have to do these things and then you can just call me House or Greg or Dr. House."

I shrugged my shoulders. We had to call Mater – Mater, Governor – Governor, it wasn't that strange.

He took me down the hall and up the elevator to the next floor. We entered into a laboratory, the one he had taken me to show me the rat slides. "This will be where you do most of your work and that will be your desk and computer. I'll give you a password to get into it. When you do work in here, you're required to wear a face shield for protection or the Mater will have your head on a platter."

I nodded and looked around. The lab didn't have half the equipment I needed for my research and of the equipment it did have, I didn't know how to operate most of it.

"Greg, I don't know how to operate most of this equipment."

"Remember, call me Master. I'll have one of the team come down and show you. Why don't you spend the rest of the day familiarizing yourself with the computer and designing the data base you want to use for our research?"

I was sure that it would take me all day to figure out how to use the computer so this wasn't a bad idea. "Okay, can you show me how to turn it on?"

He walked over and pushed a button. Within a minute a sign that said Windows showed on the screen. It asked for a password. He typed in "Hydrocodone" and the next screen came up. He spent the next few minutes showing me the various programs and what they could do. He left and I began to familiarize myself with the computer. He called on the phone around 11:30 am and told me to come downstairs, he needed coffee.

"Yes, Master." I went down and met the rest of the team as they huddled around the white board that he was writing on. I made a pot of coffee, poured a cup, but in cream and two sugars, then handed it to him. The doctors all stared at me like I was an alien (I guess I was!)

"Anything else Master?"

He shook his head and as I was going to leave he changed his mind, "Sit down Marie. Let me introduce you to my team. This is Pete, Marcus and Winnie. This is Marie, the new lab assistant that is going to be working on my new research project. So you may be sharing the lab with her from time to time."

They all welcomed me to the department and I got up to leave.

"Marie, sit down." Greg barked at me.

I sat down. He started twirling his cane as he continued to stare at the board. Pete spoke up, "It might be Lupus. That would explain the sore joints and chest pain."

Greg dismissed him, "It's never Lupus."

The symptoms on the white board said, "Chest pain, back pain, liver lesion, bone lesion, sore joints and slightly abnormal liver function test."

Winnie was the next to venture a guess, "It's got to be cancer, bone or liver cancer that has spread."

House turned and shook his head, "They did a complete search of his abdomen for cancer – nothing."

"Master, may I go? I'd like to continue setting up the data base."

He looked very annoyed and disappointed with me, "I thought you wanted to be a doctor? But, if you'd rather be a lab rat, you can go."

I was a little upset that he had embarrassed me in front of these people. He knew I _was_ a doctor. Or, he knew that I _believed_ I was a doctor. I couldn't help it, I turned and said, "Check his PTH levels." Then I left the office to return to my computer programs.

I could see that Greg's eyes were narrowed and his brow furred as he watched me walk down the hall. I smiled and waved at him.


	15. Chapter 9 Part 1 House and the Virgin

**CHAPTER 9**

**HOUSE AND THE VIRGIN**

Marcus suggested, "Ankylosing spondylitis. It would explain most of his symptoms. The lesions are probably just benign and we're chasing a red herring."

House nodded, "Get an MRI." As the team was leaving he took a deep breath and, although he thought it was a waste of money, he said, "Check his PTH levels."

Marie had been working steadily on setting up the database and typing in as much as she could remember about the history of the disease. She set up a password for her documents. She was very aware that her work here might alter history and she wanted to try and control access as best she could.

Just before it was time to go home House came charging into the lab like a bull. He wasn't exactly angry, but he was intense.

"Why did you tell us to check his PTH levels?"

She backed up as he came towards her. "What's wrong? Did the test go bad?"

"His parathyroid hormone level was elevated."

"What about his Phosphorous levels?"

"I had them run it when the PTH levels came back elevated." he looked deep into my eyes as if he was going to catch me in a lie, "They were low."

She turned her palm up to explain, "Then he probably has..."

"...oncogenic osteomalacia. Yeah, I know. I'm not a moron. The question is how you knew?"

"It was the pain in the bones and the cysts. The disorder occurs when a usually benign cyst secretes phosphotonin, causing the body to lose phosphorous which is vital in the formation of bone minerals. The bones then demineralize, and the muscles grow weak. The patient has severe pain in the bones and muscle as a result.'

He was yelling now, "_I know that! But how did you know it?"_

"Damn it Greg, I'm a doctor, not a flunky."

Greg started howling with laughter. Marie was baffled. He controlled himself long enough to say, "You've never seen Star Trek have you?"

She shook her head and stayed quiet.

"There's a character, a doctor, who always goes around saying,"Damn it Jim, I'm a doctor, not a ..." fill in the noun. When you said it, I immediately thought of him." he took in a deep breath. "I don't know who or what you are, but you just saved me several days of testing. I would have gotten to your analysis eventually, but I'm amazed you reached it so quickly."

"Oh, there's a reason. We had a cluster of children in Harrison, Pennsylvania develop it. There had been an industrial accident, resulting in children at a local school farm with benign cysts that started growing when they reached puberty. Three of them went on to develop oncogenic osteomalacia. We didn't have a clue at first what it was, it's so rare. We finally diagnosed it. I was loaned out by TOP because I'm an Epidemiologist and we needed to find out if it was related in any way to a variation in _The Scourge. _It wasn't. I eventually determined the cluster was the result of the industrial accident."

He gave her that look. The one he would give her when he _wanted_ to believe her, but didn't.

"Well, I no longer have a patient so tomorrow I can devote the day to _The Scourge_." He held up his hands like a vampire to emphasize the name of the disease.

"That's good. I'd like you to understand what we're dealing with." She pushed back a long blonde hair and looked at him with determination.

"Want to get dinner?" his intensity had faded and the little boy in him smiled at her.

"Oh, Gregory House. You are a handful. Sure, I'd like to go to dinner and tell you about my work today."

As they left the hospital they ran into Cuddy, who was talking to Wilson. House stopped and addressed them. "My God, it's the Spanish Inquisition and her first victim. You two want to join us for dinner?"

Cuddy looked at Marie and tilted her head. She was going to say something to House, but decided not to say it. Instead she shook her head, "I have a meeting and so does he."

Wilson nodded in agreement.

House realized they must have a Board Meeting. "Maybe next time." House said and gently pushed Marie towards the doors.

"They're dating?" Cuddy asked Wilson.

"She's the new lab tech in his department." Wilson smiled, knowing Cuddy would explode.

"_What? _He hired_ her?"_

Wilson nodded.

Her voice was trembling, "He hired a schizophrenic woman who thinks men should be exterminated for talking _and he's dating her?_"

"That about sums it up."

"Christ. She's got a job for life now. She's protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act because of her Schizophrenia and, if that wasn't enough, she could always get us on sexual harassment. What was House thinking?"

"Maybe it was Little House doing all the thinking." Wilson suggested.

Cuddy said nothing but exhaled loudly in frustration.

Wilson smiled, "If it's any consolation, she apparently diagnosed his patient today, even before House."

Cuddy's mouth dropped open and she looked out the doors. "Hmmm. I'm going to have to keep an eye on her."

Marie had managed to convince House to let her have a night off. She slept in her own bed, excited to be back doing what she did best. She mapped out in her head what they should do and, after going through it again, finally drifted off to sleep.

The weather had turned beautiful. The rain had stopped, the sun was darting in and out of the high flying white clouds and the temperature was in the 60's headed for the mid 70's. She caught the bus to the hospital and went into his office. She started the coffee and turned to see two of the team walk in.

"Morning." They both said to her.

"Good morning. Want some coffee?"

"Sure."

She made Pete and Winnie coffee and then greeted Marcus. A few minutes later House walked in, put his motorcycle helmet and back pack down and then took his present out to her. She handed him his coffee and he handed her a small black helmet with a red rose painted on the sides.

"Thanks." She said, inspecting the helmet.

He nodded. "If you want to get started, I'll be up in half an hour. I have to make some calls."

She took the helmet and went to the second floor lab to begin her day. She was going to start working on the rats, sampling their tissue .

House looked at his team as he drank his coffee and ate his bagel. "You guys get down to clinic. When you're done, don't forget my charts need work."

They groaned and took off. House went to his office and started to return phone calls. Wilson came running in holding his stomach and crying from laughing so hard.

House stared at him,"What?"

Wilson looked at his friend, "You need to follow me."

House got up and they took the elevator to the third floor, walked down the corridor and as they turned towards the lab, Wilson stopped and pointed, doubling over in laughter.

House started to howl. Inside the lab was Marie, working frantically with reagents and microscopes and wearing a motorcycle helmet on her head.

Wilson managed to get out between the peals of laughter, "I suspect you told her she had to wear eye and face protection when she worked in the lab?"

House was crying, "I gave her the helmet this morning so she could ride on the back of my motorcycle tonight. Oh, this is priceless."

Wilson turned serious, "House, you can't make fun of her. She'll be mortified if you do. Let me tell her."

"Are you kidding. This is too good to pass up." House straightened up and went through the door to the lab. Wilson followed.

House looked at Marie and said, "It looks good on you."

"It's awfully heavy. My neck is going to be really tired working in it all day."

House said with a serious look, "Well you know, protecting your eyes and face are important."

She frowned, "I would have thought even people in 2007 could figure out how to make something less obtrusive."

"Well, you could always wear the eye and face protection in that cupboard." he nodded at the cupboard over the sink.

Marie whipped around to look at the cabinet, her head bobbing from the weight of the full-faced helmet. She walked over and opened the cabinet, pulling out a pair of goggles with a face shield made out of a lightweight polymer. She tilted her head and looked back at House.

"I don't understand." She took off the motorcycle helmet and looked at him. "Why did you give me this to wear?"

He started laughing in short bursts. "It's a motorcycle helmet. The law requires a helmet to ride a motorcycle. I ride my motorcycle during the summer. I just wanted you to be able to ride with me."

She looked at Wilson who was looking anywhere but in her eyes. His body was wracked in silent convulsions of laughter. She stared at the two of them and realized how ridiculous she must have looked. She started to laugh. "I only have myself to blame. I just assumed it was for the lab. Okay, I've given everyone a good laugh, now Master, when are you coming up to the lab for real?"

"In a few minutes, I still have some work to do downstairs."

House and Wilson left. Wilson wiped his mouth and chuckled, "She's got a pretty good sense of humor. You're lucky."

"Yeah, if she wasn't delusional, she'd be perfect." He raised his eyebrows and smiled.

"Is she taking her medication?" Wilson sounded worried.

"No."

"That can't be good."

"She copes well without it." He shrugged his shoulders and turned out his hands, "So she thinks she's from the future. As long as she doesn't have to go back to Vulcan for Pon Far, we're just fine."

House eventually made his way back to the lab and found Marie engrossed in the slides he had prepared months earlier. When he walked through the door she looked up.

"Do you have any tissue left from the dead rat?"

"In the freezer."

"Freezer?" she asked.

"At home."

She giggled at the thought of a partial rat in the freezer in his apartment. "Well, I want to run ...damn. I can't run a photolific analysis, it hasn't been invented." She took a deep breath, "I want to get the genetic sequencing of the virus. I want to identify its motifs. How do you do that in this time zone?"

"Are we dealing with DNA or RNA?"

"Single stranded RNA."

"We'll simply use the QIAmp viral RNA extract kit to do the sequencing. To quantify it we use the real-time, reverse transcriptase, polymerase chain reaction test using the Cepheid-Smart Cycler."

She bit her lower lip and thought about it. "Let me see the product manual for the tests so I can tell if it will give us what we need."

"What is that we need?"

"I know the virus variation that will eventually start the pandemic. I know it's genetic sequencing almost by heart. I want to see how far off we are. I can come up with a fairly accurate prediction of how many generations we are away from the virus that causes the pandemic. I want to see what stage we are in the recombination and mutation of the virus. This may be the virgin virus."

House frowned, "Jesus, not another virgin."

Marie smiled at him, "This virgin could save the world."

"Save the virgin, save the world?"

She was excited "I saw Heroes! No, more like, kill the virgin, save the world!"

"Ouch!"

She was excited and sharing it with House was going to be fun. On impulse she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. He leaned forward as if he was going to grab her and really kiss her. She jumped back and looked around. Luckily no one had seen her kiss him.

He pouted, "Hey, you can't tease me like that."

"I'll make it up to you."

"Works for me. Are you staying tonight?"

"No, you're going to stay with me. Bring your overnight things and I'll microwave you dinner. You can see how I live when I'm not with you."

"It can't be good."

She hit him in the arm. "Oh, I can survive without you!"

"But would you want to?"

She laughed.

They spent the next two months working on the sequencing and discovered that they had the virgin vector and one sample of a recombination. She had been out trapping squirrels and rats around Lake Carnegie and was finding more and more carcasses. House was beginning to appreciate the tenacity of the virus and had learned not to enter or deal with the virus without a hazmat suit. Since Marie had the necessary antibodies she could handle the virus in the open. But she worried about House handling the virus. She decided that she would spend some time on developing a vaccine for the two variants they had.

No one in the hospital seemed to know what she and House were working on. Because of his sunny personality, no one asked or cared. Cuddy finally stuck her head in one day when she knew House was working on the diagnosis of a patient and asked what they were doing.

"Uh, I haven't seen any reports or any information about this project. House just keeps saying that it's coming along. I want you to tell me what you're doing?"

"Dr. Cuddy, would you mind stepping out and suiting up in a suit? We're handling a virus that has recombined and mutated once already."

She snickered, "What about you? You're in here without a hazmat suit."

"I have antibodies to the virus...you don't."

"What's the name of the virus?

"It's a Retric virus."

She chortled, "Retric virus? I've never heard of a Retric virus. It doesn't exist."

She slowly approached Cuddy, who backed up. Marie smiled, "Dr. Cuddy, I was just going to use that microscope next to you to show you a Retric virus. But please, at least wear a mask."

Marie handed her a mask. Cuddy thought about ti and decided to put it on. Marie handed her gloves, she put them on too. Marie pulled out some slide and put them under the microscope, she focused and then stepped back for Cuddy to look.

Cuddy took one look and jumped back, her voice wavering , but stern, "I've never seen anything like it. I want House down here right now."

House refused to come down at first until Cuddy told him it meant his job. He was annoyed. Cuddy was even more concerned when she saw that House suited up in a Hazmat suit before come into the room. If House was suiting up, he was taking the threat of the virus seriously.

Cuddy stepped away from the slides, "House what is going on?"

"Marie told you, we're doing research on the Retric Virus."

"What is a Retric Virus?"

He rolled his eyes, "You were looking at it."

"No, what disease does it cause?"

House looked away and tried not to smile, "_The Scourge._"

Cuddy started chuckling, "House, this isn't a Dean Koontz novel."

Marie stepped forward, "It's Pantarrsi Viridae. It's a Single Stranded Positive Sense RNA virus."

Cuddy looked a little embarrassed, "It's been a long time since I had a class in virology. What does that mean?"

"It means it's one mean son of a b!tch." House interjected.

Cuddy looked back and forth at Marie and House, "Then why doesn't the CDC know?"

"Don't ask me. I don't know." House gave a silly face and shrugged his shoulders.

Marie kept quiet.

Cuddy zeroed in on House, "Does this have anything to do with those statistics on spontaneous abortions? The CDC said it was just an anomaly within the standard deviation."

Marie said, "The CDC will ignore the statistics for the next forty years because the birth rate of males will decrease slowly and by the time they pay attention, it will be too late, it will have become a pandemic."

Cuddy gave Marie a look of pity, "You think this is the disease of the future, the one that kills everyone? The one you've come back from the future to stop."

Marie said nothing, she just kept her head down. She knew she should have kept her mouth shut.

"House, you're chasing this virus based on her fantasy? You should run it through the national virology data base. I bet you'll find it's in there and you've been on a wild goose chase."

House turned mean, "You think I'm an idiot? I checked the sequence two months ago. It doesn't exist."

Cuddy's mouth dropped open. "We better bring in the CDC after we patent it."

House cracked up, "Patent it? Patent death?"

"_Death?_" Cuddy's eyes flew open.

Marie jumped in, "Yes, you can die from it. In fact, besides the slowly increasing spontaneous abortion rate of males, it's killing adult male. But, their deaths are being blamed on pneumonia and Legionnaire's disease because it weakens their systems and then opportunistic viruses jump in and take over. In a few decades the disease itself will be the killer." Marie looked over at House, "Cuddy's right. If you patent the gene sequence of the virus, the drug companies and researchers have to come to you and pay you so they can use the gene sequence to develop a vaccine. It could mean a lot of money to the hospital."

House looked at Cuddy, "Okay, patent it, but don't bring in the CDC. If they discover our research on their own, fine, they can come to the party. But I don't plan on telling them yet. We still have some work to do before they stick their noses in and tell us how we can operate."

Cuddy looked at both of them, "What work?"

Marie spoke up. "If we can find a vaccine now and then get the CDC to insure that it's given to the male population over the next twenty years, before it recombines with the influenza virus; we can save more than half of the people that die. I mean, might die. I'm looking for that vaccine. If I find it, it's going to be worth much more money to the hospital than the virus itself."

Cuddy thought for a moment, "Okay you two, but we're moving you into a biograde 4 room. Understand? Now show me what you have."

Marie walked over to the microscope and House winked at her. Marie smiled at him. Cuddy noticed the non-verbal message they sent back and forth and wondered if they knew how much they cared about each other.

Marie brought up a slide on the screen so that everyone could see, "The genetic diversity of the serotype continues to increase. Four distinct clades or sub-clades have been linked to rodent cases and I believe are responsible for the spontaneous abortions of males. The gradual genetic changes identified in the sub-clades have been attributed to copy errors by viral encoded polymerases that lack an editing function, thereby resulting in antigenic drift."

"Christ Marie, you sound like a Geneticist. Speak English to me. I'm just a doctor."

Marie took a deep breath and smiled at her, "It's not mutating, it's recombining, which is a much faster way for it to become more virulent. We have six more generations before it can recombine with the influenza virus. It will remain low key, only infecting those that come into contact with rodents and rodent droppings. It will cause a decrease in the birth rate overall because more and more men and women will become sterile. It will cause male fetuses to be aborted. It will cause female fetuses to be aborted too, but not in the same numbers."

Cuddy thought of her own spontaneous abortion just the year before and the rats in her attic. It gave her the shivers. "Please, find out if this really is causing the abortions." She looked sadly at both of them and then left.

Marie turned to House, "That seemed personal."

"She lost a baby last year."

"Oh. I feel bad for her." Marie smiled, "I see pregnant women here and I wonder about them, what it feels like. We just don't have pregnancies." She started putting away the slides, "I went up the other day and saw the babies. You rarely see babies. They're really cute and their parents seem to actually love them, even the males."

"Babies are nothing but eating, sleeping and pooping machines. Don't go all misty eyed on me."

She stuck her tongue out at him. He stuck his out too. He turned and started to leave, but then stopped, "I'm going to be late tonight. I have a patient." He turned all the way around. "Or...you could come down and help me diagnose him." He wiggled his eyebrows.

Marie had, on occasion, gone down and brain stormed when the team was stuck. Sometimes she was helpful and sometimes she offered diagnosis that proved wrong. But House realized quickly that she was the best of his team.

"Do you really need me? I wanted to finish up entering this in the database."

"If you finish early, come on down."

"Yes, Master." She said tongue in cheek.

"Hey, don't even tease me about that. I learned my lesson."

It was the second week she worked for him. Pete had asked her why she called House "Master." He soon dispelled her of the idea that the low man on the totem pole had to call him that. She continued to call him Master that day. That night she made sure his Scotch glass stayed full and when he passed out, she bathed him over and over in self-tanning lotion until the next day he looked deep orange..._all over_.

When House woke up, his head was pounding. He walked into the bathroom to take a pee. Marie heard a scream. She started giggling. He hobbled back into the bedroom.

"What the F#ck did you do?"

She lay in bed on her stomach smiling at him, "Why me, _Master_? I don't what you're talking about, _Master_. Oh _Master_, you don't look so good!"

His face dropped and a smile crept over it, "Okay, I deserved it. Now how do I get it off?"

"Oh, it will begin to fade in a few days. I think. Cassie says she has to reapply it every four days or so because it fades."

His eyes were round and angry, "_Four Days?"_

"Yes, _Master_, four days, _at least_. Oh, and you'll be making your own coffee starting now."

He said nothing, but got into the shower and tried to wash off as much as he could. Word spread all over the hospital about Marie's revenge. People were walking in front of his office all day so that they could get a look. House thought about what she had done and smiled. She was feisty and he liked that.

She was getting to be a handful in bed, wanting sex almost every night. Then one night when she started to stroke him, he told her, "I'm a little tired tonight. We've had sex each day this week. Let's take a break tonight."

"Really? But you told me you expected it 6-7 times a week on average."

"You know they just did another study and found it was more like 2-3 times a week."

"Oh, you mean the Durex report? The one that said American males in a relationship only have sex an average of 112 times per year?"

"You knew?" he lifted his shoulders and clenched his eyes together, waiting for her to lambast him.

She didn't yell, "Yeah, I was just waiting until your penis was rubbed so raw you'd cry when you went pee. Sex is new to me, I went out and did research. I looked up sex, pornography, erotic art. I wanted to know."

He didn't know what to say.

She lifted up and kissed him. "Go to sleep Johnny Holmes."

He kissed her back and laid his head on her chest. He fell asleep smelling the Downey Fabric Softener mixed with her scent. He couldn't remember feeling so comfortable with someone. He could be himself and she still liked him. It seem strange that she had so few expectations from him.

One of the things that unnerved him though was her habit of coming in and watching him flush the rubber down the toilet. She would stand, silent and watch it twirl in the bowl and disappear. It was like she held a silent vigil for all the dying sperm. It drove him crazy. He asked her to stop, but she didn't. It was a reminder to her of everything that she valued in life. The fact that there was a time in history when sperm was plentiful enough that men could afford to flush it down the toilet. It reinforced why she was there and doing what she was doing.


	16. Chapter 9 chapter 2 House & the Virgin

"I've never met a woman who cared less about clothes. You wear the same four outfits each week. I'm just glad that I get to see you naked or I'd be really bored by now."

Her mouth dropped open, "Are you saying I'm boring?"

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her down on his lap, "I'm saying you're clothes are. It's a shame too, these 34Cs should be showcased." He reached up and fondled her through the white blouse she always wore on Tuesday. He kissed her, letting his mouth open slightly as he did.

"Are you suggesting that I take time out from saving the world to go shopping?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. I have to go to the local AMA ball next month and I was hoping you might go as my date."

"Ball? Is it a sports event?"

"It's a dance, a formal dance where women usually wear expensive long dresses, push up bras, control panties, thigh high nylons and shoes that cost as much as the dress."

"When you say expensive, what are we talking about?"

"It's my treat. I'll take you out this weekend and we'll shop."

She looked in his eyes to see what the punch line was. "Okay, what's the catch?"

He smiled like the Cheshire Cat, "You remember that night we played around with the ice cubes?"

She laughed outloud, "You really liked that, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but how did you know about that?"

"I told you I researched sex after you started insisting on it so often."

"Well that's slowed down... practically to nothing." he said out of the side of his mouth.

"I can't help it if I need time off from you. You were beginning to pick fights with me for no reason. It was just lucky that I hadn't given up my little room over the garage. These last two weeks have been good for both of us."

He stroked her hair, "When do I get to nail you again?"

She pursed her lips, "When you behave and don't call me names just for turning the tv channel."

He looked up at her. She was sitting on his good leg as he sat in his easy chair in the corner of his office. He slipped his hand under the blouse and up to her bra. He tried to go under it, but it was on firmly. He whipped his hand around and undid the clip in the back.

"Greg! It's 3:30 pm. Your team or Cuddy could come in any moment."

He wasn't listening to her, he was cupping her warm flesh in his hand and rubbing her nipple between his thumb and index finger. He had his eyes closed and a smile broke out across his face. "I remember them well." He said, "Hello girls, long time no play."

He pulled her head down so he could kiss her and get a better feel of her breast. He wanted to throw her on the floor and take her from behind, but this small pleasure would have to do for now.

They both heard the door open at the same time. House was reluctant to take his hand out, but Marie pulled back so that he lost contact with her breast. Marie jumped up and tried to grab the bra strap that flapped around in the back. Her face blushed bright red.

Jim blushed too, "Oh, sorry! I'll come back later."

"No Jim, I was just leaving." Marie ran out the door and down the hall towards the women's room.

House looked up at Wilson with a scowl. He picked his hips up and adjusted his trousers, "What do you need?

"You asked me to come over?"

House shook his head at first and then remembered, "Oh yeah, I want you to review my article before I submit it." House got up and grabbed it.

"_You_ wrote an article?"

"Actually, Marie wrote it. It's for submission to the New England Journal of Medicine. It's about one of the cases she solved with me a couple of months ago."

He thumbed through it and then it dawned on him, "You haven't read it have you? You want me to be your eyes."

House looked down and around the room, avoiding Wilson. "Look, I was there, I know what's she's talking about. You weren't. I need someone to read it that wasn't there so I can see if it makes sense."

Wilson sighed and said, "Okay, I'll read it." He started out, "By the way, you guys need to get a room. And what's up with that...you have _two_ rooms?"

"She needed a break, so we haven't diddled each other for a couple of weeks."

He laughed, "Oh, ho. The great House has a girlfriend and he's still not getting laid."

"Yeah, well if you hadn't barged in, who knows how far I would have gotten."

Wilson shook his head, "What did you do that made her go home to her place?"

He swished his wrist, "I got my period." He then frowned, "She says I was picking fights."

"She certainly boxed your ears." Wilson snickered and his eyes twinkled.

House gave Wilson a snarl.

Wilson was all smiles, "No wonder you've been surly lately. You miss having her around your place all the time. Have you asked her to move in with you?"

"I almost did, but we work together and I wonder if it's too much time together?"

"Well, she works most of her time upstairs, away from you. I don't know House, that's up to you two. All I know is that she's the sanest loony person I know."

"That reminds me, we had a Class V hurricane in Mexico in August." House reminded Wilson.

"I know. That's not the half of it. Did you see the MedWeb today? They've had an outbreak of Marburg in Africa and it's been linked back to fruit bats just like she foretold." Wilson said.

House said nothing, but the look he gave Wilson was intense. He obviously was thinking it through, "You know what.? I think we might want to sell some stock. That recession is next."

Wilson nodded and left.

House was baffled. She didn't seem the least interested in clothes. They had been out shopping for less than an hour and she wanted to go home.

"You haven't bought a dress, shoes, anything. You need a dress for the ball."

She frowned and sighed, "Take Winnie or Cuddy or that brunette doctor in Dermatology you like. I don't think they want a schizophrenic time-traveling cuckoo at their big social event." she was frustrated and feeling out of place with the thought of a big social event. She stood at the banister on the second overlooking the ground level of the mall.

He gave her a look of reproval, "Marie, I want you with me at the ball. You'll keep me from being bored." He smiled and then knitted his brows, "Now, how did you know about the brunette doctor?"

"You just about drool every time she's in the elevator with us. _And_ you smile at her. That's a dead give away. You don't smile that much in public, and when you do it's usually because you're flirting. You're very sexy when you decide to flirt. I think she likes you. She primps whenever you're around. Why not ask her to this ball?"

He was hurt, she genuinely wanted him to ask another woman to the ball. "You really want me to ask her? What's going on?"

She heard the hurt feelings and frowned. She walked over to a concrete bench by Winchell's Pretzels and sat down. He sat with her, staring around at everyone walking to and fro. She turned to him, "Greg, I'm going to be pulled out one day. I don't know why it hasn't happened, but it will. Mabel won't give up on me. When I get pulled out, I won't be coming back. I wish I could take you with me, but you'd be put into a colony and we'd never see each other. It's been bothering me for weeks. It's why I moved back to my place. I was becoming too comfortable being with you and I could see you were too comfortable too. This isn't going to end well. And it won't be because of anything you did. Please remember that. If I'm gone at some point, it's not because of you. It's a matter of timing...about 250 years of timing." He gave her _the look _and she knew he didn't believe her. Still, she hoped that when the time came, he would remember what she said. "If you want to ask the brunette out, it wouldn't bother me. I think it would be a good idea. And, judging from the looks she gives you, she'll probably say yes.

He was angry and hurt. He wouldn't look at her.

"Just think of the money you'll save not having to buy me a dress and shoes?"

He got up and started walking back to the parking lot. She ran after him. He opened the door and they got inside. "I'll take you home."

"Greg. Please. Think about it. If we don't put some distance between us now, it's going to really hurt when I get pulled out."

"Oh, cut the crap. There is no time travel, no time zones, no banks, no time stream, no pulling out. You're doing this because you want to break up. I'm not a moron, _I get it._ But don't treat me like a child. If you want out of the relationship, just tell me. I'm really tired of all of your bullsh!t."

She took in a sharp breath and turned her head to look out the window. _Maybe this is the best way. Let him believe I want to end it. It will be easier on him if he thinks it's over rather than that I just disappear someday._

"I'm sorry, I wish I could have spared you this." She meant it too.

"Don't waste your breath. I was just in it for the entertainment value...and the sex."

She knew it wasn't true, but it hurt to hear him say it anyway. They drove the rest of the way in silence. She wanted to grab him and tell him it was all a mistake, that she didn't want to be in 2007 unless he was with her, but she had to think about his happiness when she was gone. She started to get out of the car, but hesitated. "Greg. I've never felt like..." She caught herself. Her voice was beginning to wobble. She took a breath of air, "I'll see you Monday."

He said nothing. As soon as the door closed he pealed away from the curb and into the street. She watched, wishing she was home, wishing she had never learned to share her life with a man.

"Mabel. You need to take a break. It's been three weeks and we haven't had any signs of her. We just have to accept that she's probably one of the Jane Does that were found around the Trenton-Princeton area back then." 47256 was worried about Mabel. She had taken the slip of her friend pretty hard, blaming herself. Everyone who reviewed the case, and there were many, concluded it wasn't Mabel's fault, but you couldn't convince her.

"I know she's still alive. I can't leave her out there. It must be frightening to live in such a primitive society. I did some research and discovered that men and women were still allowed to copulate back then. Touching by a man was acceptable. Can you imagine how disgusting that must be?"

"I don't mind you trying to find her, but just don't devote every waking hour to it. She wouldn't want you to. How's her dog?" 47256 patted Mabel on her back.

"He's fine. I took him home with me. He's a sweet dog, I know why she was so attached to him. Her friends come to see him and I'm getting to know a lot about her. I guess 123265 was pretty popular."

"Okay, just remember that you have a life. She would want you to live it."

Mabel nodded. "Let's hope she triggers the account."

Wilson handed House the article. "She writes like a doctor and makes more sense than most people. The article is very well written. I made a few grammatical changes just to make it more in line with current vernacular, but otherwise, it's ready to go."

"Thanks." House said and then went back to work.

Wilson didn't leave. "You're pouting. What's up?"

"She told me to ask Betsy Malloy to the ball."

Wilson sat down. "Did she say why?"

He snickered, "Because she wants to put some distance between us in case people from the future snatch her back."

Wilson winced. "House, that's her disease talking. She likes you, I can tell."

"It doesn't matter. She's using her disease to break up with me. How lame is that? I'm moving on..."

"Come on. She's sick. Give her a break. I mean, I'm not sure you want to get involved with her for the long haul, but so far she's been really good for you. So did you ask Betsy?"

"Not yet. I'm not sure I will. I'm sick of women."

"If you're not, would you mind if I do?"

House shook his head, "No, go ahead."


	17. Chapter 9 Part 3 House & the Virgin

**Over the next month, Marie spent most of her waking hours in the laboratory, trying to find a vaccine for the virgin and recombined virus. It was driving her crazy. Nothing she did seem to work seemed to work.**

**She finally decided to try a new reagent with her own blood. She separated the antibodies with the reagent and waited to see if the virus would grow in an agar containing her antibodies. If it didn't, then she'd start using it on rats. It took several days, but when she pulled the sample out of incubation she was both pleased and displeased. The agar wasn't clean, the virus had been able to grow. But they had clearly slowed the virus and it had kept it from developing in lethal numbers. Her antibodies were slowing down the virgin and recombined virus, but not wiping them out altogether.**

**She started trying to reproduce the antibodies. She bought some lab rats, housed them in the laboratory and then caught some flak from Cuddy. Apparently, there was a whole protocol for having and caring for lab rats which she hadn't been following. Cuddy had one of the other lab assistants come up from the oncology lab and help her set up the necessary paperwork and shelters for the animals.**

**House hadn't shown up in the lab for weeks. She saw him, but just in passing. He would walk past her and nod, but not say anything. She'd say hi, but he wouldn't stop. She emailed him with updates of the lab results. Things were going slowly. Trying to isolate the antibodies and create the necessary reagents was taking longer than she thought, but that was because she was doing it all by herself.**

**She remembered what he had said about her clothing. She had to admit that, because in her time zone clothing was typically only worn in winter or extreme sunlight, she had not given buying clothing a priority. She went out one lonely night after work and bought a dress at the thrift store. It was a shirt dress that cinched in tight at the waist. It was modest, but it made her look hot. She went to Payless and bought some comfortable open toed pumps. When she wore the outfit to work, she got some appreciative stares from the males she passed in the corridor. The only stare she was interested in was House's, but since they were officially "broken up" she wasn't going to search for him. She stayed in the lab for most of the day testing the rats. Around 3:00 pm one of House's team came up. Marie didn't really bother to look up, she was at a crucial point in the testing.**

**"House wants you to come down. We've got one that we aren't having any luck with. He wants you to come down and help diagnose him." Winnie stood in front of her in a hazmat suit.**

**Marie finally looked up, sighed, and got up. They went down to the second floor and entered the outer office where the rest of the team was sitting watching House write on the white board. She walked in behind Winnie and he turned around. He paused, his eyes narrowed and he chuckled. "My God, you actually bought yourself a new frock. Are you trolling for a new victim?"**

**"Did you need my help or can I go back up?" she said without expression or inflection in her voice.**

**House told Pete, "Give her the file and the test results."**

**She looked at the chart and then at the white board which had written in House's handwriting: _10 yr, male, obese, nystagmus_, _photodysphoria, diabetes, liver enzymes elevated._**

**She looked up at House, "You can put up on the board, "short stature" as a symptom."**

**"He's 5'5" and both his parents were short." House snapped.**

**"If you don't want my help, fine." She got up to leave and he waved at her.**

**"Fine." He said, leaning down in her face to make a point, "I'll put it down just to make you happy now and me happy when we have to erase it."**

**"You can also put down Swedish ancestry."**

**"Swedish isn't a symptom." House said.**

**She stood up, threw the chart on the table and looked at him without expression, "Give the child Ace inhibitors for the Cardiomyopothy, fibrates and statins combined for the elevated triglyceride levels and then send him home. There's not much more that you can do."**

**"Are you going to tell us what you think it is or do we have to play twenty questions?"**

**She put her hands on her hips, "Lucky you had a Geneticist on your team, oh wait, I'm just a loony, schizophrenic, nutty..."**

**"Oh, cut the crap."**

**"You treat me like crap. I'm a second rate citizen in this group because you guys can't see my medical degree... what do I have to do to convince you that I'm a real doctor?" She didn't know why she had snapped. She was tired of people thinking that she was just some lab assistant to House. Since working at PPTH she had authored two medical papers, conducted important research, ran her own lab and yet House still treated her like a moron.**

**He said with sarcasm, "I guess you'll just have to go forward in time, ask Dr. Who for a copy of your transcript and bring it back for us."**

**"F#ck you. You can't cure the kid, so you don't need me." She stomped out of the room.**

**House quickly turned to the team, "Do what she suggested."**

**The team scrambled and he ran after Marie. He went up to the lab, but when he got there he saw her turn the corner down the hall with her purse. "Marie! Damn it. Wait!"**

**She ducked into the stairwell. She started running down the stairs. He burst into the stairwell, his cane clattering against the cement and steel steps.**

**"Jesus Christ. At least tell me what you think the kid has." He yelled down the stairs.**

**Marie stopped and looked up at him, angry and ready to run.**

**His voice calmed down, "Do you really want to do this to a family? Walk out and not let them have some understanding of what they're child faces?" He started to walk down the stairs. She followed him with her grey eyes, like a cat following their prey. He wasn't sure he should take the last few steps. He narrowed his eyes and looked at her sideways, "You want to hit me, don't you?"**

**She looked at him and tried to figure out what she felt. "Greg, I'm feeling so many things I don't know what to say or how to sort them out. I have no one here who believes me. I work hard at my job with no praise. I don't want us to quarrel, because it hurts too much and I want desperately to go home and put this world behind me."**

**He realized that she wasn't going to hit him so he stepped down, "If you need praise for doing your job, you're barking up the wrong tree. You're an adult, I shouldn't have to pat you on the head. I don't believe you're from the future. But I do believe you have medical training of some kind, especially in genetics and the Retric virus. I don't want to argue and I don't want you to go home." He pushed her up against the wall and brought his face down so that she could feel his breath on her lips and cheek. His eyes burned into hers.**

**"What's wrong with the boy?" His lips came so close to hers that she could feel the warmth from him, smell him.**

**She played along and let the words from her mouth tickle his lips, "He has Alström Syndrome. Now, may I go?"**

**He smiled and gave her lips the slightest brushing, making her shiver. He turned and went out the door on the landing. She continued down the stairs, aching for more, wondering how she would ever be able to go back to her time zone and look at men the same way.**

**She waited for the bus and when it pulled up, she took a seat about half way back. She looked down, out the window and chuckled. House was on his motorcycle and, although she couldn't see his face through the helmet face shield, she knew he was looking at her from the angle of his head. He followed the bus to the stop where she got off.**

**She walked over to his motorcycle with a smirk on her face. He bent back and unlatched her motorcycle helmet and handed it to her. She shook her head and pushed her hair back, "Greg, I'm tired."**

**He flipped up his helmet, "Put it on and climb on back."**

**She looked at the helmet and then at him. She didn't want to argue so she put it on and hiked up her dress to throw her leg over. He looked down at her legs and admired them. He wanted to reach back and feel them, run his hand up her thigh. She wrapped her arms around him and leaned against his back. She closed her eyes as House pulled in the clutch and opened up the throttle. They took off down the road.**

**House wasn't sure where he was taking her, he just wanted to keep her with him as long as she'd let him. After an hour, he realized that he was in Philadelphia. She drew her arms tighter around his ribs. He took her down to Penn's Landing, parked and then they got off. He latched the helmets to the motorcycle and then turned to her. She seemed upset.**

**"What are you sniffling about?"**

**"I'm from Philadelphia. My home sits about 1,000 feet up right over there. It floats above the Delaware River, it has a lovely view. My dog waits for me to come home so that I can take him down and walk on the Landing with him I miss him. He's such a sweet dog, just a mutt. Do you like dogs, Greg?"**

**He wrinkled his nose and hemmed and hawed. "I like some."**

**She looked around the landing, "I need nourishment."**

**"Well, maybe we can find you a peanut butter and jelly sandwich."**

**They both laughed.**

**He pointed to the south, "Let's get room service. They have good food at the Hyatt."**

**He pulled her hand towards the hotel. She pulled back from him and he pulled harder until she fell into his arms. He bent down and kissed her hard. She kissed him back. When he pulled back, she still had her eyes closed. They walked into the hotel and he registered. They poured into the elevator, kissing each other and joking about when they met.**

**"You ordered me out of my bedroom." he said remembering when she first came to his apartment.**

**"That's because I knew you snored. You told me to get dressed when I was naked."**

**He thought about that, "Yeah, what was that about? What was I thinking? In fact, I want to apologize for that and let you know I'll be happy to help you take them off when we get into the room."**

**The elevator door opened and they started looking down the hall for their room. As soon as they found it, House let them in and closed the door. She walked in, threw her purse on the table and looked out the balcony onto the river. The sun was just going down and the river looked glassy.**

**He walked up behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist and started to undo her belt. House undid the top of her dress and stuck his hand inside, felt her breast and rubbed up against her. He undid the buttons all the way down. He laid his hand flat against her abdomen and kissed her neck. He slipped his hand into her panties, stopping first to feel the course hair against her warm body. He slipped his fingers between her and began to rub slowly until he could feel her responding, pushing up against his hand. She could feel his erection behind her and she reached behind to stroke him through his jeans.**

**He stopped to concentrate on her stroking him. He pulled his hand out of her panties and limped over to the bed, started to take off his shoes and socks. She dropped the dress and bra on the floor and stood watching him, her breasts, round, high and topped with hard pink nipples. He stood up, dropped his Levis and took his shirt and t-shirt off. He sat back on the bed, his legs almost touching the floor. She walked over and straddled him as he sat up. He sucked and fondled her breasts, making sounds of pleasure.**

**Marie pushed him back so that he was laying flat on his back and she was sitting on his chest. She rolled to the side and pulled her panties off. She leaned down and pulled his shorts down his thighs and then off. He felt down her back and along the roundness of her ass. She climbed off the bed and kneeled in front of him, sucking and then licking the tip of his penis. She realized she was tasting the salty, bitter taste of semen. She sucked and grabbed his erection to stroke it, running her tongue around the rim of the head. He was moaning, the friction of her shaft coupled with the sucking was driving him crazy. She slowed down and went back to licking. She was stroking him with the same rhythm of her hard, wet sucking. He kept inhaling short breaths.**

**His voice was hoarse, "Marie, I'm going to come."**

**She couldn't stand the thought of all that semen and sperm going to waste. She stood up, mounted his erection and began to pump up and down, constricting her muscles as she did. It didn't take long, he looked at her, his eyes large and his mouth open. He yelled out and then his face contorted over and over and she felt him ejaculate inside of her. He pushed up and down on her ass until the orgasm began to fade. He finally scrambled to hold onto her hips to keep them still. He couldn't take any more. He tried to slow his breathing. She kissed his lips and then lifted off of him and fell onto the bed.**

**He said nothing for awhile. She didn't care. She had never felt semen inside of her. She reached down and felt between her legs and smiled. It was so warm and sticky. House turned to her and kissed her. He ran his hand down the back of her spine and down her ass. He pushed his hand between her legs and continued the rhythm he had started before. She began to respond. He slipped his fingers inside over and over while he played with her and teased her, changing the rhythm, stopping and starting again, until she couldn't take it and started to push her pelvis into his hand over and over until she nodded, smiled at him and cried softly into his ear, "Greg. Greg. Oh yeah." Her contractions were hard, pulling her uterus and cervix, along with the semen, further inside with each wave of pleasure. It was finally over.**

**He reached up and stroked her hair and kissed her gently. She was happy. Happier than she had ever been. It was the first time in generations that a woman had been inseminated naturally. She didn't move, she was afraid to move. House didn't realize the happiness he had just given her. She didn't know if she was fertile or if the timing was right and she didn't care. All she knew was that she was the happy recipient of a boatload of sperm, worth more than all the gold in her time zone.**

**It finally hit him. "I didn't have a rubber on. Where are you in your cycle?"**

**"I had my period ten days ago."**

**"Crap!" He looked agitated.**

**She smiled, "Do you think I could be pregnant?" Her voice was so jubilant, it scared him.**

**"Unlikely, it really is hard to get pregnant at your age. But the timing is close, which is why I'll prescribe you the morning-after pill tomorrow and you can take it."**

**"What does it do?"**

**"It stops implantation of the zygote."**

**She started laughing, "Oh, I'm not taking that! Why would I do that?"**

**He pushed back from her, "To keep from having a baby."**

**She smiled, "But that would be wonderful. A baby! That would be so incredible. Wouldn't you love to have a baby?"**

**"No, not really. I've dodged that bomb for 48 years, I was hoping to dodge it the rest of my life."**

**She chuckled and ignored his concern, "You would make a good father."**

**He rolled his eyes, lifted up and practically yelled, "How could anyone in their right mind think I would make a good father?"**

**"Look, you're funny, playful, talented, intelligent, have a good job, smell good, seem healthy except for your leg and ..."**

**"...immoral, selfish, narcissistic, rude, grouchy..."**

**"But you wouldn't have to be a father. I could take the baby when I go back. They'd put her on a baby farm to be raised." She thought about it and the thought of never seeing her child again made her sad for some reason. It was strange. She didn't even know if she was pregnant and yet she was already developing feelings for a child she would probably never have or raise.**

**He knew he'd find a way to get her to take the pill. In the meantime, he made love to her from behind. He loved the smoothness of her ass and the way her breast felt dangling as he rode her. Her body responded like no other woman's. Whether it was because she discovered sex so late in her life, or because she had studied and embraced it with enthusiasm, she managed to take him to levels of excitement he had never experienced. House felt her waist as he penetrated with his last thrusts. He hung on to it and kissed her back as he released himself from her. He realized that he was happy. Happy to be back with her, hoping she wouldn't pull away again.**

**They went back to Princeton early in the morning, House dropping Marie off at her apartment so that she could get ready for work. When she walked into the lab, she locked her purse in the drawer and turned to see Lisa Cuddy standing in the doorway, knocking on the glass.**

**Marie motioned to her that it was safe for her to come in, Marie didn't have any samples out. Cuddy walked in and stood about ten feet in front of the desk Marie was working at. "Dr. Cuddy? Can I help you?"**

**"I've heard a nasty rumor that the two papers House authored were actually written by you. Is that true?" She stood with a hand on her hip waiting for a response.**

**"Yes. I co-authored them. Why?'**

**She looked head on into Marie's eyes, "Dr. Wilson is convinced that you're a doctor. Are you?"**

**Marie didn't want to answer questions, she wasn't feeling well and she was annoyed. Even if she said yes, Cuddy wouldn't believe her. But Cuddy already knew the so-called "delusions" Marie had, so what was there to lose? Marie said it as if she were talking to a child who had threatened her authority, "I'm a doctor in my time zone. I'm also an epidemiologist so I know a lot about the history of medicine. I'm many things Mater Cuddy. No one believes me, but I am more than just a loony. In fact, I'm not even mentally ill. But then, I don't expect you to believe me."**

**"What I'm worried about is that you might have been, "struck off the books" somewhere in _this_ time zone, you know, fired for malpractice. If it comes to light, we'll be standing with egg on our face – the validity of your work and our work will be in question."**

**Marie snickered, "I'm considered the best in my field. I've never been reproved for my work. In fact, I review cases for the IMA when other doctors fail to perform adequately."**

**"IMA?"**

**"International Medical Association. But, getting back to this time zone, I assume, since I have no interaction with patients and Dr. House supervises me, we haven't violated any laws or codes, correct?" Marie watched as Cuddy nodded. "Then excuse me, but I need to get back to work."**

**There was something else, because Cuddy didn't budge. Marie finally put down the slide in her hand and waited for her to say something.**

**Cuddy saw Marie look up again, "Are you still dating House?"**

**"Is that any of your business?" Marie sat down on a stool.**

**"He _is _your supervisor. I am his boss."**

**"So?"**

**"I want to avoid any lawsuits if things go bad between you two."**

**Marie was genuinely curious, "I can sue if my relationship with a male goes bad? How much money do I get?"**

**Cuddy's eyes narrowed in confusion. "No, I'm talking about sexual harassment. The fact that House had sex with you, knowing you were his employee. I just don't want you suing House and the hospital."**

**"Why would I? I'm very happy. He may have impregnated me!"**

**She saw Cuddy lose her balance slightly. "He what?"**

**"I might be pregnant. He had unprotected sex with me yesterday."**

**Cuddy relaxed a little, "Then there's a chance that you could still take the Morning-After pill. I'll give you a prescription."**

**"Would it look anything like this one Greg gave me?" She showed her the prescription and Cuddy nodded.**

**"You need to get that filled and take it as soon as possible."**

**"I told Greg it was a waste of time to write it out. It's against the law to kill a zygote, an embryo, a fetus or a baby where I come from. I can't. I wouldn't anyway. I want Greg's baby. His genes are perfect."**

**"He's a lousy choice for a father. I mean, genetically he's probably great, but socially you couldn't make a worse decision."**

**Marie was angry, "You know, you think you know him, but you don't. He's not the nicest person in the world, but he has more positive qualities that negative. I think he'd make a good father, but it doesn't matter. The baby will be raised on a farm anyway."**

**Cuddy narrowed her eyes, "A farm?"**

**"Yes, a baby farm, where they raise babies."**

**Cuddy took a deep breath and walked closer to Marie. She adopted a motherly voice, "Marie, with your diagnosis, it's really not a good idea for you to have a child. That child could inherit a disposition for having schizophrenia too."**

**Marie slammed her palm on the counter, "I am not schizophrenic. I am descended from the Callahans of Philadelphia. Our matriarchal line goes back generations in the Philadelphia area – back to 1878 when my grandfather, Cornelius Callahan came over from Donegal. We've never had mental illness in our family. _Ever!_ I know the entire genetic tree of my family and we have very few genetically related diseases except for late onstage diabetes and hemachromatosis."**

**Cuddy stopped and thought for a second. "You're from Philadelphia? Do you have any family living there now?"**

**"Yes, probably my great-great-great...you know, really great, grandmother lives there now. Most of the women in my family refused to take their husband's surnames. Let me think, turn of the 21st century? It would be either Kathleen or Shannon Callahan ...they would be my direct ancestor. I don't remember which one is alive at this time."**

**"Maybe we should contact them, let them know where you are."**

**She started laughing, "You must be joking, they don't know me. I haven't been born yet."**

**Cuddy smiled and nodded, "Right." She turned in thought and, just before she opened the lab door, turned back, "Please fill your prescription. It's not fair to House if you have a baby. I don't think he wants to have a child with you. Not if he's giving you the morning-after pill." She walked out and disappeared around the corner.**


	18. Chapter 10Pregnant Pause

**CHAPTER 10**

**PREGNANT PAUSE**

I thought I liked Cuddy, until she told me to kill my baby, if there was one. I stood there wanting to throw something at someone and when Greg walked through the door, the beaker missed his head by inches, shattering next to the centrifuge.

"What the fu..." he looked over at me like I was truly insane–more insane than he normally thought I was.

I threw my hair back and put my hands on my hips, "That's for not wanting me or my baby."

"Baby? What are you talking about?"

"Cuddy told me that you didn't want to have a child with me. I guess you think I'm too mentally ill to have your child. So, I'm not good enough to express the House genes."

"Wait, I gave you that prescription because I want you to have options. I may not see myself as a father, but if you're pregnant, it's my fault and I won't run away. In case you haven't noticed, I've managed to be there for you over the last seven months that I've known you." He was angry and he was screaming at me.

We were both angry. I wanted him to be happy about me being pregnant (if I was) and he wanted me to consider "options" (like I felt I had any.) "They would kill me if they find out I aborted a baby. Babies are extremely precious to my society. That's why the governors have the state raise them. Everyone is afforded the same upbringing and opportunities."

He said sarcastically, "Sounds like the perfect society. Everyone is a cookie cutter stamp of the person standing next to them. In this time zone, we kind of like the imperfections of family life. Yeah, some people would be better off with the state raising them, but for the most part, parents tend to love and take care of their kids better than the state."

I clenched my jaw and narrowed my eyes, "No one's a copy of the next person. Well...the clones are...but not the breeders. We all have different personalities and we react differently to the way we are raised on the farms and in the schools. I just meant that we all get the same chances...a chance to do what we want."

He collapsed into a chair, "Jesus Christ, listen to me? I'm arguing about a society that doesn't exist over a baby that might not have even been conceived. I messed up last night. I should have used a rubber and then we wouldn't be having this conversation. But, if you insist on having the baby, I'll help you the best I can."

I could feel my anger turn to sadness and disappointment. My eyes drooped and so did my mouth, "But you're hoping that there's no baby and no need for you to have to be a father to a baby you don't want."

"Yes. I'm hoping that there is no baby. Marie, you're a few fries short of a Happy Meal. With a diagnosis of Schizophrenia they may make you take drugs if you want to keep the baby. Do you want to be doped up like before? Besides, I'm betting you don' t even know how to take care of a baby, do you?"

I had to stop and sit down. I shook my head, "I won't have to, they'll take the baby and raise her on a baby farm."

"Okay, let's play with your fantasy. Let's assume you are from the future, but that they don't pull you out of this time zone in time and you have the baby here. How are you going to take care of it?"

"I thought that even here, you had the option of being parents or giving the baby to the government? I'd give the baby to the government and they could raise her on a baby farm."

"It doesn't work like that. The government in this time zone does a lousy job at raising kids. It's a lot better when the kid stays with the parent. You want the best for your baby don't you?"

"Yes, of course."

"Then that means that you, the mother, should raise the baby. Now, you have to ask yourself, do you know how to raise a baby?"

I was devastated, "No. I haven't got a clue."

"It's not easy raising children even when you do know. So now you have to ask yourself, is it a good idea to bring a child into the world that will either be raised by a government that doesn't do a good job or a mother who doesn't have a clue?"

I started crying and I could tell he felt uncomfortable making me cry. "But, I've never seen _any_ of my babies. I don't know what they look like. I don't know how many I have. I don't know where they went. This would be my only chance to have one, see what it looked like, touch its face. I just wanted to hold _one_ of them. Is that so bad? Is that so selfish?"

Greg looked at me with his big blue eyes and said without blinking, "Yes, it is selfish. Your needs and desires aren't important when it comes to having children. What they need and desire become paramount."

He did come over and hold me and pat my back. I stopped crying and pulled away from him, wiped my eyes and took a deep breath. My voice was a whisper, "I'll take the pill." He didn't say anything to me. He just held me again until I didn't want to be held anymore. "I need to get back to work. Why did you come up?"

"I wanted to know if you would be interested in going to New York City and trapping some rodents in Central Park. I'm going up to attend some seminars and obtain some units towards my required education. You could stay with me at the Waldorf Astoria at night and trap during the day."

"Wow, the most rural area contained within an urban setting in the world. Yes, I'd like to see if it has spread geographically to that area." I continued to wipe my nose and face.

"You don't look well." He said.

"I'm upset and I'm really sick to my stomach. I may be getting a virus."

He looked worried, "Not _The Scourge_?"

"No, I felt a little achy this morning, but I don't think it's _The Scourge,_ I'd be a lot sicker if it was.'

"Maybe and maybe not. You told me that your antibodies slowed the virus down, but didn't stop it completely. Maybe you do have it, but just a mild case of it."

She thought about it. Her eyes grew large, "Greg, if that's true, I could have given it to you and just about everyone I've come into contact with in the last two days! I need to find out if I have it. You need to help me in the lab. Incubation on the virus varies. It can take four to ten days before someone gets symptoms after exposure."

"Well, let's draw some blood." He went over and grabbed a needle and several vials.He drew several vials of my blood and we both began testing, but within an hour I was vomiting and my lungs were filling, two of the many signs of _The Scourge._ My fever went up to 101°F and I was having a hard time concentrating.

House looked at me and smirked, "You're no good to me sick. You better go find a bed and go to sleep."

"Where? If I'm sick, I need to be in isolation."

Greg went to the phone and dialed someone, "Cuddy? I need you to admit Marie to isolation." There was a pause, "Yes, right now! Yeah, well a lot can happen in an hour...okay."

I sat down and within minutes Cuddy showed up in a mask along with two orderlies also in masks and hazmat suits. House, standing in his hazmat suit waved to her not to come inside. She talked to him through the intercom.

"Are you sure it's your new virus?"

"No, we're testing now. But she's too sick to work and if she has it, she has to be isolated."

"Why don't you admit her?"

"I'm having sex with her." He shrugged, "Probably not a good idea for me to treat her too."

Cuddy gave him a stern look, "Yeah, especially if she's pregnant."

House gave her a smug smile.

"What, run out of rubbers during your marathon?"

"Let's just say I jump started without my overcoat. Come on, get her out of here and monitor her."

I let them put me in a wheel chair. I didn't feel too bad, just like I had a bad stomach virus. But I wanted to sleep. When I arrived in the room I turned to Cuddy, "Would you fill this for me?" I took the prescription that Greg had given me and gave it to her.

She looked down and then asked quietly, "It's levonorgestrel, are you sure?"

I looked at her, she almost seemed sad, "I thought you'd be happy?"

She looked uncomfortable, fidgety, "Well, I started thinking about it and who am I to say that you won't make a great Mom?"

I chuckled, "Greg pointed out my inadequacies as a mother, reminding me that I don't know the first thing about raising a baby."

Cuddy seemed upset about that,"What does anyone know? Women all over the world have children, most haven't been trained in the art of child rearing. It's something you learn as you go along. Besides, what does House know?"

"Thanks, but I think I better take it. I don't know where I'll be or what will be going on in my life when the baby is born. It wouldn't be fair to the baby."

She looked disappointed, "Okay, but just as long as you're not doing it because of what I said."

"No...don't worry. God, where do I go to throw up?' I asked.

"You can do it in this tub or go through that door into the toilet."

I ran through the door and puked my guts out. I got back in bed and had a drink of water. It stayed down, but barely. She watched and then smiled in sympathy. After a few minutes I fell asleep and when I woke up the nurse was trying to get me to drink some orange juice.

"Okay." I took a sip and it seemed okay. I drank a little more and started to feel rumblings. I stopped. I didn't want to push it.

"Are you okay, going to keep that down?"

I nodded, "I think so.'

She brought me a little cup with a pill in it. I tossed it back and took a little water with it. I laid back, not knowing what time it was or really caring. My fever was higher, 102.5°F. I just wanted to sleep.

I don't know if I had actually been asleep or just going in and out, but my stomach starting cramping again and I puked all over the bed and gown. The nurse rang for help and a CNA changed my bed and me. I went back to sleep and when I woke up I could see it was night outside. Greg was outside of the room looking at my chart.

I rang for the nurse so that Greg would know I was awake. He looked up and came over to the window. "I'm coming in, just give me a minute to suit up."

I nodded. He went into the outer chamber, washed and suited up and then came inside. He looked worried. I didn't like that. He came over to the bed and, though I couldn't see his mouth, his eyes were smiling down at me.

"I'm sorry, you were right. You have _The Scourge._ Obviously you have a mild form of it and I expect you'll recover, but the concern is for everyone you came into contact with."

"I have several vials of my antibodies isolated. You need to administer them to yourself, Cuddy, and your team. I didn't really have contact with anyone else during that time period. Even when I was in the thrift store it was pretty deserted and my contact with the woman behind the counter was so minimal it wouldn't have spread. At this stage, the virus needs a lot more contact to be contracted. It needs the contact that you had with me. Until it combines with the influenza virus, it won't be as virulent."

"I saw in the chart that you took the Morning-After pill. Are you okay?"

"I'm sure it was the right decision. I just want you to concentrate on getting the antibodies into you. At this juncture, the disease is hard to get, but it can be lethal to someone like you, who's defenseless."

"Okay, I'll get Cameron to help me. She knows what she's doing."

I had met Cameron. She used to be one of Greg's Fellows. But she was not one of the doctors in Immunology. I had helped her on occasion when they needed an extra hand in the lab. I liked her, we got along well. I think she found it amusing that Greg and I were in a relationship. She constantly asked me questions about him while we were working together.

They brought me a tray of mostly broth and liquids. It had a few crackers, but I avoided them. Just about everything going down was turning my stomach. Greg left but told me he would be back before he went home.

Around ten at night Cameron and Greg showed up and talked to me through the intercom.

Greg flipped the switch, "I'm not coming in, it's late and I'm tired. I'd like to get home."

"Did you inject the antibodies?" I asked.

Cameron spoke up, smiling to reassure me, "We prepared them and injected House and his team. We'll get Cuddy in the morning. They're all feeling a little under the weather from the injection, but no problems so far."

House spoke up, "We have to keep this quiet, it's not an approved procedure. But I figure if you're the one who prepared it, we're safe."

"Yes, you should be okay. You may get a headache too. But it will be gone in the morning."

"If we could isolate what's in your blood that works so well, we could manufacture it." He said to me. I could see his eyes were bloodshot and his beard fuller. He was tired.

"Well, if it completely cured it, I would agree, but we need something that knocks it out now, before it evolves into the influenza. Right now my antibodies slow it down, but it still keeps going which means it can recombine and mutate."

"Go to sleep. We can talk shop in the morning."

I nodded. I looked at him and he smiled gently and sweetly at me. I smiled back and blew him a kiss. Cameron looked at both of us and smiled to herself. I don't really know what she was thinking.

Greg started to say something but he quickly noted that Cameron was standing next to him and so he snapped his mouth closed and turned to leave.


	19. Chapter 10 Part 2 Pregnant Pause

Over the next few days I received prophylactic antibiotics to keep any opportunistic diseases from taking advantage of my weakened immunity. I also took my second dose of the morning-after pill. I went from being nauseated to having respiratory problems, which was typical for the disease. Had I not had the antibodies, my immune system would have been in the toilet. As it was, I developed pneumonia, but it wasn't a bad case so I was sent home on the third day. Luckily, I recovered and found that, although I was feeling tired, I had no side effects from the illness.

Over the next few weeks no one else became sick. I started working harder and harder to find a vaccine that would stop the virus now, before it mutated or recombined even further. I felt like I was working against the clock. I didn't know why the Gatekeeper hadn't pulled me out, but I knew Mabel would be trying. I suspected that my tag had been depleted a long time ago. I knew that I had gone off course, I had arrived three years earlier than I was suppose to, which would make it extremely difficult for Mabel to locate me. But I knew she was trying.

In October, Greg and I spent some time in New York and I collected squirrels and rats. I found that they were clean, there was no sign of the virus in their system. I insisted on going back the next weekend to Philadelphia and try to trap rodents there. Greg wasn't that enthusiastic about running around in parks and trapping rats so I let him go off to a blues bar and spend most of his weekend playing cards with friends who played in a band there. The rodents in Philadelphia had one infected rat, it carried the recombined variant.

I told Greg that I needed to plot where the infection had spread. I was fairly sure that I was in the second or third year of the virus, because of the fact that it hadn't spread to New York. I needed someone to drive me and let me trap rodents in a fifty mile circumference around Princeton. I proposed to Greg that I spend a month collecting samples and documenting my observations. My only concern was that I didn't know how to drive, so I needed help with the actual logistics of it.

He arranged for me to travel with a lab assistant named Cale Wilburton. Cale and I packed up a rental car and took off in mid October for the north to Patterson. We spent the day collecting and documenting the number or carcasses and the proximity to the human population. I stopped and spoke to some residents who hadn't noticed an increase in the death of any squirrels or rats. I found the park maintenance crew who confirmed that there had been a family of squirrels on the south side of their park that had recently died suddenly. I went down with one of the maintenance crew and picked up a carcass, froze it in the portable freezer in the trunk and then took off for Hopatcong, NY.

We found a reasonably priced motel and checked in. I spent most of the evening typing up my data and emailing it back to the hospital and to Greg. For the next few weeks Cale and I formed a bond. We talked about science most of the time. He was a good looking geek (the word he used to describe himself) and quite articulate. I kept my time travel tales to myself and for the most part he was in the dark about the disease we were looking for. He just knew that, before he went, he had to get a vaccine. He didn't know the vaccine was mostly anti-bodies isolated from my blood. He started to really get into the job and he finally realized that, what he was seeing under the microscope in Allentown, PA, was something new, something he hadn't studied in microbiology.

"Marie, this is new, huh?" Cale looked up with his light brown eyes. He was very sober, almost scared.

I nodded as I continued to work on the computer and he drove.

"Does it cause illness?"

I nodded again.

"Am I in danger?" He pushed back his sandy brown hair from his forehead.

I looked up, "We gave you a shot that should give you enough protection that you won't die if you get it. It takes a lot of exposure to get sick, but be careful. Take all the precautions that I showed you when we started."

"The groundskeeper who died of pneumonia in the last town. Was it really pneumonia?" he sounded worried.

I knew I couldn't lie, but I didn't want to lose Cale. We worked well together and I had already trained him, "Cale, I don't actually know for sure. I suspect he may have died of the disease. There was a high mortality rate of rodents in his park. He may have been trying to get rid of the carcasses and just handled too many for too long."

"This is scary, but cool. Will I get mentioned in the write-up?"

I laughed. "I'll make Greg dedicate it to you!"

He howled. The idea of Greg House dedicating anything to anyone was funny.

About ten days into our trip I started having to deal with a very disgruntled Gregory House. "Why don't you come home for a weekend, it's only fifty miles?"

"I sent Cale back to the hospital to store the samples, I don't have a car."

"Take a bus." he suggested.

I snickered, "You're a piece of work Gregory House. You're moaning about not seeing me, but you won't drive the fifty miles to come up."

"Who wants to spend a weekend in Quakertown?"

I was frustrated and pissed, "Then stay in Princeton. I'll be home in two weeks."

He exhaled loudly in to the reciever, "Okay, I'll come up. I'm bored."

"Remember, if you come up I'll be working. You'll have to help me trap."

"That sounds romantic."

"When can I expect you?" I asked.

"It's 4:00 pm, I should be there by 7:00 pm."

"Okay, drive carefully."

"See ya."

But I didn't see or hear from him and I started to go nuts. At 8:00 pm I finally got through to him on his cell phone.

"I've got a patient and he's been puking for two weeks. I've got to stay here. When I diagnose it I'll drive up and see you."

I knew it wouldn't make a difference, but I had to say it, "Next time, call me and let me know. I've been going nuts worrying about you."

"_Going _nuts? If you'll remember, you already are nuts 123265."

"Call me when you're on your way."

"Okay."

I closed the cell phone, a gift from Greg so that he could keep tabs on me and be a nuisance. I had been hungry, but had been waiting for Greg so that I could go eat. I grabbed my wallet and went across the street to Roy Rogers and grabbed a cheeseburger and an apple crisp. I went back and fell asleep watching, "When Harry Met Sally."

He didn't make it up that weekend or the next because of patients. Whenever we would talk he would ask if I was coming home for the weekend. I finally told him that I wasn't coming back to Princeton until I had finished.

"Greg, it's hard for me to stop and start projects like this. I like to just get them over with." I was in Double Trouble State Park and wishing I was back in Princeton. I had been on the road with Cale for almost four weeks. I sent Cale back every weekend to store our samples and to take some time off. I stayed, trapped and interviewed local people about the rodents and, in one town, I discovered that several humans had died of dehydration from vomiting and diarrhea or pneumonia, both which are often associated with _The Scourge_. I made notes to check it out later.

It was mid November before I saw Greg. We had been only fifty miles away from each other, but he just never found the time to come and see me. It was okay though. We were both very busy and it was probably good that he have a break from me. It was Thursday and I had told Greg I'd be home Friday afternoon. But Cale started getting a toothache and, although I wanted to canvas one last park, I had enough data to come to a scientific conclusion, so I decided that we should go home a day early. Cale dropped me off and told me he would take the rental car back in the morning. I didn't see any lights on in the apartment, but I was hoping that maybe Greg was in the bedroom.

At Greg's insistence, I had given up my apartment and moved into his. I walked inside, hoping to surprise him, but not finding him anywhere in the apartment. I put everything down in the bedroom, went back to the kitchen and grabbed a tall drink of water. I was exhausted, cranky and bloated. I wanted to crawl into bed and sleep, sleep, sleep. I pulled out one of his t-shirts, put it on and crawled in bed.

Something woke me up. I turned over and looked at the clock. It was 9:30 pm. I heard voices in the living room. People were laughing and music was playing. I got up and walked down the hall. I saw Betsy Malloy and Greg sitting next to each other on the floor, record albums spread all around them and drinks in their hands. Greg was smiling that flirty little smile he sometimes gives and she was giggling and playing with her long, luscious hair.

"Don't mind me, I just came out to get some water." I said, scaring both of them so much that their bodies jerked.

Greg's smile dropped and he yelled as I continued into the kitchen, "Marie, I thought you were coming home tomorrow night?"

I came out of the kitchen, water in hand, "I can see." I walked over, leaned down, kissed him on the cheek, "Good night honey, it's good to be home." I looked over at Betsy and smiled as kindly as I could, "Good night Betsy." I went back to bed and fell asleep.

Sometime during the night, I felt an arm around my waist and a kiss on my neck. "I wish I had known you were coming home. I would have come home earlier."

"Why? It sounded like you were having fun." I didn't bother to turn over and look at him. I just wanted to sleep.

He sat up and turned on the light. "I knew it! You were jealous."

"I just wondered why the two of you were less than two feet apart drinking on the floor of_ our_ apartment."

"I was out at a bar with Wilson. She and a friend came in and sat down. We joined them and started talking about old jazz records. She collects them and so she wanted to see my collection. That's all there was."

"Okay, now can we go to sleep?"

He wasn't satisfied, "You're not going to ask me any questions? Accuse me of flirting behind your back?"

"You weren't flirting behind my back. You were flirting in front of me. Greg, I recognize your courting style and you were definitely in flirting mode. I don't care. If you felt a need to be with her, what can I do?"

He laid back down and reached around me, "I missed you. It was lonely around here. No more trips for that long. Not unless you take me with you."

My heart fell, "Greg, don't say that please. I keep warning you that one day I'll..."

"I know, you'll be snatched back to your time zone. Well, until then, no trips without me. It's too boring around here."

I turned and looked at him. His blue eyes looked sad and strained. "You really did miss me, didn't you?"

The air hung with all these emotions we had for each other. But rather than tackle them, he retreated, "Of course! I missed the food, the clean laundry, the stocked kitchen and, of course, the sex."

"Tonight sex is out of the question, but starting tomorrow night, you better get in a supply of rubbers because you aren't getting out of this bed."

He kissed me on my cheek and grinned, "Nice to have you home."

As I started to drift off. I wondered if Betsy Molloy would be my replacement when I went home to my time zone. She was beautiful, a doctor, and she obviously loved jazz. _Oh well, he could do worse_.

My desire for sex increased dramatically when I moved in with Greg. Before I went on the trip, I think he was becoming gun shy when he was around me. If I walked up to him and hugged him he pulled his groin away, afraid I was going to start fondling him. He complained that his penis wasn't design for non-stop use and I needed to keep to my side of the bed until he could walk straight.

I took Friday off, having worked thirty straight days. Greg took Friday afternoon off, called to let me know he was on his way and drove straight home. I had gone out to the mall that morning and purchased a slinky red silk and black lace nightgown and was waiting with a drink of single malt whiskey in my hand for when he came through the door.

I could hear it was raining and I was so glad that we weren't still out in the field trying to catch rodents in the rain. It was hell trying to trap in bad weather. I heard the outside door and my heart picked up its pace. The doorknob turned and in walked a smiling Greg. He put his cane down and I walked right into his arms. He held me in one arm, took the drink in the other and took a sip.

He sat it down on the desk and kissed me. The warmth and taste of the whisky in his mouth excited me. I had been wet for the last half hour just thinking about what I wanted to do to him when he got home.

He lifted my gown and felt that I had nothing on underneath. He rubbed between my legs and laughed, "Jesus, did you start without me?"

"I don't know what it is, but I can't think about you without getting wet these days. But can we talk about this later. I'm so worked up, I could probably come with you just saying the word."

"Come." he whispered in my ear.

I giggled. "Well, it sent signals to all the right places, but my body is holding out for more."

"Then let's give your body what it wants."

I grabbed his groin and could feel that he was excited too. He covered my mouth and sucked my lower lip. He pushed me backwards until I was leaned up against the dining table. He kissed me again and then nibbled on my ear and dragged his mouth down to my neck where he kissed me lightly. I was feeling this throughout my whole body. I was sopping wet by this time, dying for him to enter me. But instead he dragged his mouth and nose down from my neck into my cleavage. His mouth followed the roundness of my breast and he pulled the lace and silk away from my breast and began to suck my nipple until I could feel warm electric sensations in my groin. I could hear and feel my breath pick up. He pushed me up against the table. He undid his trousers, pulled me forward and then turned me around. He flipped my gown up in back. He took his fingers and spread me apart, entered me and then reached around me as he continued his thrusting. He used his fingers to play with me while he fondled my breast with his other hand. I was so wet, there was no problem with gliding in and out. With each thrust he rubbed against me in a way that sent just the right feeling through my body. He slowed, stopped, then picked up the pace again, teasing me. I kept going even when he stopped. He was rubbing between my legs as I did the pumping for both of us. He stopped me by pinning my legs to the table and pushing me down with his free hand. He took over, holding me still and thrusting hard and fast. The feel of him inside me and his fingers playing with me sent me over the edge. He wouldn't let me move and that was half the excitement. He controlled it all. I finally started to scream and that's when he picked up the pace even more and started to grunt. I screamed into the table, the orgasm was so violent and strong I felt every inch of the contraction around his erection. He thrust up a few times and finished with several grunts and his fist closed tight around my hair. He let me loose, but didn't pull out right away. He simply leaned down, his chest pushing into my back as he tried to catch his breath. He finally stood up and pulled out. I stood up and felt the semen run down my leg. I reached down and touched it, looked at it on my fingers. It was filmy white and sticky. I smiled at my fingers.

"What is it about you and semen?" He was smiling at me as I looked up and smiled back. But then the smile disappeared, he stared into space, his head cocked at an angle. He had that look he gets when something dawns on him.

"What is it?" I asked, still feeling it run down my thigh.

"You're pregnant."

"What?"

"Your libido is in overdrive and those gorgeous breasts are bigger."

"The only time that we had unprotected sex, before this, I took the pills you gave me."

"But you were sick. You probably vomited most of it up or the antibiotics interfered with it or both. You're pregnant."

"I swear I took those pills."

"I believe you. But you probably threw it up and the second dose was hampered by the antibiotics we were giving you. If I remember correctly the effectiveness of it is hindered by antibiotics. You're pregnant. We need to get you a pregnancy test. When did you have your last period?"

I thought about it. Because of our medication in my time zone, I went most of my life without having one so it wasn't unusual for me not to have one. When I went on the trip and got caught up in my work, I hadn't noticed that I hadn't had a period.

"Greg, the last period I had was over two months ago."

He winced, "I knew it. Christ you're having a baby."

"Really?" I was both excited and worried.

"We need a pregnancy test."

Greg got dressed and went to the drug store. He brought home a test and told me to take it.

I read the box and shook my head, "But it says to take it first thing in the morning."

"That's because most women take the test in the first few weeks, when the pregnancy hormones are just building and you need for them to be at their highest levels in the urine before they'll register. You're far enough along that you're urine will be saturated any time during the day. Go pee."

I went back to the bathroom and closed the door. I sat down and took the wand out. The door opened and there was Greg, ready to observe, always curious. I peed a little and then caught a clean stream. I flushed, put the wand down on the sink and washed my hands. Greg picked up the wand.

"It said a minute, that we had to wait a minute." I admonished him.

"We don't have to wait a minute. You're a glowing pink already. You're pregnant."

I was numb so I looked to him to see how I should feel. He was worried. He walked into the bedroom and sat down on the bed. I sat down too, a few feet away from him.

"I'm sorry Greg. I did take the pills, I really did."

He turned and nodded. "I know. It's okay, you can still have an abortion. You're only eight weeks pregnant."

"Sure, I'll do whatever you tell me. When should I have it?" I asked trying seem calm about it all.

"You're required to go in for counseling, watch a film and then you go back two days later for the procedure. I'll make the appointment tomorrow."

I nodded, feeling tingly sad all over. I didn't want him to see the tears I could feel swelling up, so I said, "I'm taking a shower and ran back into the bathroom, closed the doors and threw the wand and it's hopeful pink away in the trash can.

I dreamed that night that I had the baby and it wasn't a girl. It was a boy with big blue eyes. He was smiling and he held out something to me in his hand. It was bright and round. I looked closer and it was blue with swirls of white all over it. I recognized it as the earth. He was holding earth out to me in his hand. I tried to take it, but I woke up.

I jerked awake and sat up. House was staring at me. "Are you okay? You kept saying, 'Give it to Mommy.'"

"I did?"

"Are you having second thoughts about the abortion?"

I slid back under the covers and put my arm over my eyes so he couldn't see the tears again. "I know you're right. I know I have to go through with it. But I've wanted a baby, every girl on the planet in my time zone, wants a baby. You have to understand. I live in a society where life is so precious we squeeze the last ounce of semen out of the poor males that can donate. They're still donating on their death beds. It's so sacred and highly revered I can't tell you how heartbreaking it is to me to think I'm going to destroy a life. I don't know if I can go home. If they find out, and they probably will, I'll be stripped of my job at TOP."

"You don't have to tell them, you could say you lost the baby."

"There will be records. They'll know I'm lying. But, you're right. How can I take care of a baby? What do I know about it?"

Greg was solemn, "You know a lot. You take care of me and you've had a dog. Just add in changing diapers and breast feeding and you're a Mom. The baby is already this big." He held up two fingers about three-quarters of an inches apart. "It has all of its organs, fingers, toes, elbows, ears, eyes, nose and it's experiencing it's first muscle contractions. At this point it's no longer an embryo, it's a fetus."

I gasped and started to cry. How could I kill this baby? Organs? It already had its organs? Fingers? Toes?

He pulled my arm up off of my eyes and stared into my eyes. He chuckled, "That's what I thought. I guess you can call me Daddy. Well Mom, we better feed you. You're going to need the nourishment." He got up and went into the kitchen.

I walked down the hall to the kitchen and saw a busy Greg House. He was searching through the freezer for something to microwave and serve. He pulled out two burritos and started to "nuke" them. He looked over at me and smiled. He didn't look sad or angry. He just looked resigned and sweet.

Something hit me. A feeling so intense I almost stumbled. I wanted to keep this moment forever. I wanted to keep him forever. I didn't want to go home. I wanted this. I wanted him. I couldn't imagine my life without him in it. The feeling made me sick with hunger. I wondered if anyone had ever felt like this? This desire never to let someone go, this desire to keep them safe, to take care of them? If I felt like this about Greg, how would I feel about our baby? It scared me. Someday Mabel would find me and when she did, she'd yank me back. Yank me not knowing that I now had a life here, a family. Oh God, how could I get word to her not to look for me?


	20. Chapter 11 Part 1 Coming to Term

**CHAPTER 11**

**COMING TO TERM**

He stared at me as I took the plate with the burrito, "Are you okay?"

I shook the cobwebs out and then nodded, "I was just thinking. Do you think I'll make a good mother?"

He chuckled, "I think you'll be better than most. You really have patience. I mean the fact that you didn't go nuts when you found Betsy on the floor with me...that's patience."

"Was your mom a good mother?"

He picked up his burrito and stopped in midair to think. "Yes and no. She loved me "unconditionally," he stopped to draw quotation marks in the air, "or about as unconditionally as you can get. But, she didn't know how to stand up to my father and, because of it, he...well, he bullied me around."

"I can tell you now, you're not going to bully our child. I won't stand for that."

He smiled, "I have a distinct feeling that a lot of my behavior won't be tolerated once the baby is born."

"You seem calm about this. Aren't you scared?"

"Shitless. But, life goes on. We adapt. Humans are good at adapting. Contrary to popular perceptions, I can behave if I want. I've adapted on many occasions. The problem is you. When they find out you're pregnant, they're going to want you to go back on your psych meds so that you're not a threat to yourself or the baby."

I pleaded with my eyes. "Greg, please don't let that happen. I'm _not_ crazy. Look, I was right about _The Scourge_, wasn't I? I was right about the hurricane, the Marburg outbreak. Even you have to admit that I work and write like a doctor. A brilliant one I might add. Don't you believe me yet?"

He started to say something and then stopped in midbreath. He winced, "Marie, I would love to believe you, but I just can't. I do believe you're a doctor and I think you probably worked for some agency like the CDC, found this disease and then you had a mental breakdown. Can you at least consider that you might be delusional?" He shook his head, "It's useless, you're so far into your disease that you think it's real. I wish I could help you. But, with the increase in hormones you'll experience during pregnancy, it may exacerbate your mental condition."

"I won't be able to think or do my job on those drugs."

"Then you can be a lady of leisure." he tried to reassure me.

"Can we make a deal? If I get worse, then I go on the drugs. But as long as I stay the same, I don't have to take them?"

He chewed and followed my eyes with his. "Okay. That's fair."

I smiled at him. "Will I be this horny my whole pregnancy?"

"Probably not, so even though I may get red and sore again, I should just be grateful. In seven months I won't be getting any."

"Why?"

"You shouldn't have sex just after giving birth while you heal. Plus, you're going to find taking care of a baby is a full time job and sex is the last thing on your mind."

"Wow, I can't imagine not wanting sex."

He snorted, "Me neither, but it happens."

We curled up for the rest of the night on the couch and watched television. I fell asleep around 9 pm and he woke me up at midnight and took me to bed. I fell asleep almost immediately.

When we woke up I looked at him and watched him sleep for a few minutes. I got up, made his coffee and then grabbed the dirty clothes and took them downstairs to wash. I felt happy. I wanted to run back up, crawl in bed with him and kiss him all over. After I separated the whites from the dark and started the washer, I did just that. I ran back up and climbed in bed. I scooted in, wrapped my arms around him and began to kiss his forehead, his eyes, his lips and more until he opened an eye.

"You couldn't wait until ten to do this?"

"Be careful, you're talking to the mother of your child and I'm very sensitive right now. I just woke you up with kisses, it could have been worse."

"It could be better, I could be asleep."

"Mmmm, I know you love to sleep, but I 'm feeling pretty frisky and I was hoping for a good shag before I went shopping."

He lifted his head, trying to adjust his eyes, "Shopping?"

"I want to look at baby things."

He smiled, "You're only eight weeks, not eight months. You have a long time to go before you need anything."

"Yeah, well that's not going to stop me. I'm off in an hour. Before I go I thought I could leave you with something."

"Leave me with a kiss and when you get back we can explore your sordid appetites."

I chuckled. "Okay. Go back to sleep."

I got up and went shopping. I took the bus to the mall and strolled through the stores looking at baby equipment, clothes and maternity things. I bought a couple of books and as I went through Sears I saw a brochure on driving lessons. I realized that I should learn to drive if I was going to have a baby.

Over the next few weeks I took driving lessons and I have to say, it was nerve wracking at first. Greg refused to ride in the car with me until the day I took my test. I passed it even though the day of my test, December 22nd , there was ice on the road. Greg had driven with me to the test laughing at how nervous I was. When I drove him home he suggested we go out to celebrate. We went to Chili's at the mall where I had a salad and he had salmon. I convinced him to go with me to the maternity shop, "A Pea in the Pod." He bought me a pair of maternity pants, a sweater and a bra. He also took me to Macy's and bought me two pairs of comfortable, but fashionable, shoes. It was 7:00 pm before we were ready to go home. We were on our way out when we ran into Cuddy.

"House! Marie! What are you doing here?" She looked down at my bags, the one saying "Pea in the Pod" prominently displayed.

I quickly volunteered, "I passed my driver's exam and we were celebrating. What about you?''

"I need a Hannukah gift for my friend's son." She kept looking at my bag.

Greg had been holding my hand with his free hand. He dropped my hand and grabbed my bag from me. He opened it up and pulled out the clothes, "Is this what you wanted to see? I'm pregnant. We decided on the blue sweater because it looks good with my beautiful eyes."

Cuddy was amused, she looked at me, "I thought you took the pills?"

"I did." I said.

House looked bored, "She was vomiting all day, she probably threw the pill up."

Cuddy nodded, "Well congratulations you two. I'm really happy for you. I better get going. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." I said.

"Bah, Humbug." Greg added.

We left the mall and went home. I was happy about the driver's license, but when I got home I looked around and the apartment looked as it always did. There were no decorations or Christmas tree.

"Why don't we have a Christmas tree like everyone else?" I was standing in the middle of the living room with my fists on my hips.

"Because we're Buddhists." he said, sitting down on the couch.

I snarled at him. "I want a tree and decorations." I turned around and stared at him.

"Don't look at me. Christmas is a waste of time and money."

I went over and kissed him with my tongue darting around his tongue. He started to respond, reaching up and feeling my breasts through my shirt. I unbuttoned my top and snapped my bra clasp in the front, my breast dangled freely next to his face. He reached up and grabbed them, nuzzling his face between them.

He pulled back and looked in my eyes, "These puppies are getting bigger by the day."

I straddled him and we fell back on the couch. He started sucking and licking my breasts. "Why don't I get some ice and we can play."

"Ice sounds good."

"And then after we play, we could go get that tree and decorations."

He pushed me back and I fell off the couch laughing. "You're evil."

I licked my lips and lifted my breasts and encircled the nipples with my fingers as I laid down on the floor.

"Oh man, I'm toast. Go get the ice, I'll be back in the bedroom."

I grabbed a glass and put the ice in it and took off down the hall. I stopped at the door and took off my pants. He was already naked and on top of the bed, his erection not quite full yet. I put the glass over to the side and went back down to the bottom of the bed and rubbed my breasts against his feet and up his legs. I stopped and let my mouth play with his erection until it was hard and throbbing. I took a small piece of ice and put it in my mouth. I went down and took him in my mouth.

"Oh my God. Oh that's good. That's..." he inhaled quickly as I switched to licking with my cold tongue. I went around the rim with my tongue. The ice was melting quickly. It didn't matter, he always came fast with ice in my mouth. I sucked, the warmth and cold sending waves of pleasure through him. It wasn't long and I was wiping my mouth. He was laying there, his eyes closed. I cleaned him up a little and then looked at his very happy face. He opened his eyes.

"Damn, ice head has to be one of my favorites. Right up there with breath mints."

I chuckled. I had once eaten a breath mint just before giving him head, an Altoid, and within seconds he came. He said the experience was too intense to do all the time. It happened so quickly.

He grinned, "Come here and let me give you a little ice treatment."

"Oh, can we do this later? I really want a tree and decorations."

He sat up, "You'd rather buy a Christmas Tree than have an orgasm? My God, this is it. This is the end of sex as we know it." He looked defeated.

"Honey, I promise, you can get me off later, let's just go get the tree. It's getting late and I want a tree. We can stop at Target and get decorations."

He shook his head and got to his feet.

We purchased the tree and brought it home. He put the first strand of lights on the top and then let me do the rest. I put the rest of the decorations on the tree and then turned on the lights. They were all different colors and twinkled. I ran outside to see if I could see the tree from the street. I was so excited. I sat back and Greg put his arm around me.

"You can see it from the street, it looks just as pretty as the one on the corner!" He said nothing. "Well?" I asked.

"It looks pretty pathetic."

"What do you mean? It's lovely."

"It's a pagan ritual adapted by the Christian church to lure pagans into Christianity, it's pathetic."

"Can I be your pagan?"

He kissed me on my lips, "You _are_ my pagan." He looked at the tree again, "I guess it looks okay. I need to get used to it. I have a feeling the kid is going to want one."

Our first Christmas was low key. We exchanged presents. I was more than shocked that he had bothered to buy me one. I purchased some no wrinkle shirts for him and he laughed when he opened them. I also bought him an I-Phone which I think he really liked. But it was the signed Charlie Parker Poster that he really loved and within a week he not only had it framed, but hanging in the living room.

I received one gift. It was an emerald shaped 3 Karat diamond necklace. It was beautiful. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever owned. We both enjoyed our gifts.

As the days went on, I became more and more anxious about being pulled out. I worried too about my baby dying as a result of _The Scourge_.

I found being pregnant interesting. I didn't have morning sickness but I wasn't that hungry. The first time I went to the obstetrician, Greg came with me. He had picked the doctor because she had the lowest malpractice rate in the hospital. I liked her because she was no nonsense.

"Crawl up on the couch and we'll strap you up to the Doppler. Ready to hear your baby's heartbeat?"

"Do we have to?" House asked.

We both looked at him, "Greg?"

He gave me a smirk, "You're just going to get all emotional and start crying."

Dr. Booth looked at me as I climbed up, "Hey take advantage of being pregnant. You can always blame your crying on hormones. Now let's see if we can find this baby's heartbeat."

At first there was nothing. She continued to hunt around and then I heard it, a whooshing sound that sounded so fast I didn't think it could belong to a baby. I bursted out in tears, Greg rolled his eyes.

"For Chris' sake, it's a heartbeat, just a heartbeat."

The Doctor was stern, "House, it's the _healthy_ heartbeat of your son or daughter. I think even you should be a little in awe."

House said nothing back, but looked contrite.

"Okay, I'm giving you supplements to take. I want to see you in a month unless something comes up. House, since you're her employer, don't let her work too long and don't let her stress out. Okay, you two, move along, I have patients to see."

I watched movies on having children including one where Arnold Schwarzenneger gets pregnant. He was almost as emotional in the movie as I felt. Greg was tired of my mood swings and had reached the point where he would walk into the lab or apartment and announce, "You are a Goddess, the most glorious pregnant woman in the world. You will be a fantastic mother. No you're not fat. I am nothing but a weak and moronic male and I will never leave you."

One morning he did this while Cuddy was in the lab talking to me about the lab budget. Cuddy looked at me and then House, "That all sounds charming, and it sounds quite the romantic, but what was that all about?"

"Yes, well I'm just trying to kill all birds with one outburst." He pretended to be me, "Everyone else glows when they're pregnant, do I glow? I don't know anything about being a mother...what makes me think I'd be a good mother? Do I look fat? What would you know, you're just a male! And my favorite, "You're going to leave me for Dr. Molloy."

Dr. Cuddy started laughing. She saw that I was not amused and so she made an effort to stop laughing.

"He thinks this is funny. I'd like for him to be tired all the time, swollen, ugly and horny without relief."

Cuddy looked at House and started laughing at him.

House became defensive, "My God the woman is insatiable. My willy is going to fall off – it's worn down to the nub."

'Wasn't much to wear down." I quipped.

Cuddy threw her hands up! "Whoa...you two sound like an old married couple. I just came in here to get your budget reports for the quarter."

I pulled them out of the drawer.

He leaned down to Cuddy and with a stage whisper said, "Watch this." He walked over, took the papers out of my hand and handed them to Cuddy. Then he reached around and with both hands grabbed my butt and pulled me into him and kissed me. I should have smacked him, but for some reason, since I had been pregnant I was starved for attention–from him. I melted and he turned, with his arm around me and said, "That's how I got her pregnant."

Cuddy shook her head and left. He turned back to me and kissed me again.

I pulled away, pouting, "I'm going home early. I've worked late each day this week and I'm tired...Oh! Greg! It moved! It moved! I felt it. Right here." I took his hand and placed it where I had felt it.

"Marie, I won't be able to feel it move for awhile, it's still too small. You'll just have to keep me posted. In a month I might be able to feel it. The sonogram is next week. I'll see plenty then."

I woke up on the next rather dull looking Tuesday and shook House awake. He moaned, "Can I just hand you the vibrator this morning? I'd like to sleep in."

I smirked, "Greg, it's sonogram day. We get to see the baby!"

"Oh, yes. Another reminder that I won't get much sleep from here on out."

I was pissed, I wanted him to be as excited as I was, "Okay, fine. I'll go alone."

He raised up on his elbows, "Do you really think you can handle the emotional impact of this without me there to lambast? Of course I'm coming, but we don't have to be there for three hours. Can't we just sleep for another hour?"

"Well, now that you're awake, I don't need the vibrator do I?" I slipped my hand down his shorts.

"There's a bus leaving in a few minutes, please be under it." He put his head down and then smiled. He pinched my butt. I pulled his willy.

"Oww...be careful, that's the father of your child."

"Come on, let's get naked and get a little exercise."

"I get enough exercise just pushing my luck." he said.

We eventually made love and after having a light breakfast, I started drinking a quart of water. On the way over to the hospital I drank some more water as I had been told to do. I was hurting, I was so full. I begged the receptionist to let me go pee.

She growled, "No, you need a full bladder to get a better picture. It will only be a few minutes."

I was called into the examination room about five minutes later. I waddled in, afraid my bladder might burst, and got up on the table. Greg was sitting in a chair on the other side of the room looking extremely bored. We were waiting for the doctor in silence, my heart beating fast. I was still in awe of the fact that there was a baby, a real baby, growing inside of me and I was half way through my gestation. It seemed so unreal.

"Don't sit all the way over there. You won't be able to see her when she's on the screen. Come over and stand next to me." I commanded.

"I can see."

Now I was begging, "Greg, pleeeease. I want you to stand next to me. I'm nervous. What if they find something wrong with her?"

"He'll be perfect."

"Greg, you know it can't be a boy, don't you?

He looked puzzled. "Why? It's a 50/50 chance."

"Because I was sick with _The Virgin Scourge_ when the zygote was implanted. The baby would have been aborted if it was a boy. That's the way it works. Only girls survive a direct case of _The Scourge._"

I could see him think about it. He looked down and then back at me. His voice was quiet, "Hmmm, you're right. Yeah, you're right."

"Did you want a boy?" I asked.

"I don't really care. But thanks for reminding me that we're bringing a child into a world where this new disease exists. I wish you'd tell me where you were exposed to all these variants. Was it at the CDC? A private lab?" he looked at me, his eyes squinting and his brow furred.

I hated these conversations, "Some of us have a natural genetic resistance from our parents. We are also inoculated with a vaccine in vitro at the Breeder Facility. Those with the natural resistance combined with the inoculation usually survive, otherwise we are spontaneously aborted."

"Right," he said sarcastically. He always ended up pissed off at me when we talked about the future. I was glad to see the doctor walk in so that he didn't make one of his wise cracks. I was not only pissed at him, but I needed to piss. I wanted to see my baby. I wanted something to take my mind off Greg's lack of faith in me.

"Marie, House. Ready to see your baby?" she smiled at both of us.

Greg grunted.

I nodded enthusiastically.

"Okay, then let's see what a miniature House looks like." She started the machine, calibrated something and then spread a gel over my expanding belly. She took the wand and pushed down on me. I saw the 3-D view of a tiny fist and my heart leaped up.

"Greg, a fist!"

House rolled his eyes, "Yes, I can see it Marie."

She moved further up and we could see a little face.

"Greg, oh, what a sweet face." I smiled over at him.

"Yes, dear. It's a sweet face." He slapped his face with his eyes crossed.

Doctor Booth pushed further and smiled, "Let's see whether we have a girl or boy. Do you want to know the sex of your baby?"

I looked at Greg and he reached over and grabbed my hand. He said, "Yes. We'd like to know."

I looked back at the screen. She pulled the wand around.

"Looks as if this baby wants to keep it a secret. We need the baby to turn. Let's see if we can get this cutie to move." She put the wand down and pushed down on my belly, moving the baby with her hands. I felt the baby twist around. "Okay, let's try this again." She picked up the wand and moved it around.

We saw the face again and I almost started crying. My daughter was lovely, her eyes closed and her lips pursed. Her hands formed little fists, ready to do battle. I was surprised at how protective I already felt.

"Ohhh. Now this is scary." She said it, but she didn't sound really scared. "I hope the world is ready for another House. We have a boy."

It was the last thing I heard. My mind went swimming, my heart pounded up into my head. My breathing escalated to where I started to hyperventilate.

"Marie, Marie?" Greg was yelling at me.

Doctor Booth kept the monitor on. "House, the baby is in distress. What's going on?"

"She's having a panic attack, she didn't expect it to be a boy."

"She's having a panic attack because it's a boy?" Dr. Booth sounded baffled.

"Long story. Marie, you have to breath or we'll lose the baby. Come on Marie." He put his face just inches from my face, "Breathe! Breathe! Come on, breathe with me. In...out...in...out...come on, you have to breathe for the baby. Do you understand? Nod if you understand."

I nodded. I followed his instructions and within a few minutes I was breathing. They had an oxygen mask on me to get oxygen to the baby. They moved me into a room to monitor me. Doctor Booth came in, checked me over and cleared me. "I want you to rest for an hour before you go home. Take the day off and relax. I'm sorry I upset you."

"It's not what you think. I'm just worried about it being a boy, worried it won't survive."

"I understand. If I was having House's son, I think I'd take a long walk off a short pier. You're in for a wild ride." She left.

Greg came over to me, "Why the panic attack?"

"He'll be sent to the Colonies if I get pulled back. I can't let them do that! He needs me Greg. He needs to be raised by parents."

He went quiet, I could see I had upset him. He thought I was having a mental breakdown. "Marie, he's not going to the Colonies. There are no Colonies. We're going to raise our son here in Princeton."

"I know you believe that, but it doesn't help me deal with this. I know what I know."

He frowned and shook his head, "I don't know how to make you believe that he'll be okay."

I laid back and closed my eyes. Once again the image came to me. I saw my baby son handing me the earth, the shining earth. "_Oh my God! Oh my God!_"

Greg was annoyed and frustrated, "Now what?"

"Greg, he survived the virgin _Scourge. He survived!_ He's developed the antibodies to _The Scourge_ both before and after it's recombination with the influenza virus."

"How do you know that?"

"He must have the genetic resistance and he would also have automatically developed the same antibodies that I have to the pandemic virus. Now, having lived through the Virgin _Scourge_, he's developed the antibodies to it too. Greg..." I started crying, sobbing. "Greg, our son is the key to saving the earth. He has all the antibodies necessary to stop _The Scourge_. He's a healthy male, who will have healthy sperm counts that has survived the virus. Oh my God, what do we do?"

He stared into space with that look he gets on his face when he's trying to solve a puzzle, "I think we go home and think this through. We need to figure this out."

I nodded and then he leaned over and hugged me. I chuckled, "We're going to have a boy! Can you believe that? A _boy!_" It meant one thing to me, I couldn't go home. Not if I wanted my son to have a life.


	21. Chapter 11 Part 2Coming to Term

I went to work the next day and all day long I thought of our son and the life he would lead. He wouldn't have a life if I were pulled back. He'd be raised apart from me and he would eventually end up in a colony. I was especially worried because this child was destined to be brilliant and that would pose a problem in the Colonies. Men who were brilliant frequently ended up sedated. They always tried to figure out the system, start to desire a different life and then they'd do something about it. As a result, they'd be heavily sedated or even lobotomized to prevent them from stirring up trouble. It made me sick to even think about it.

On the other hand, my son would be the Board of Governor's answer to _The Scourge_. All the Surveys to the past, all the tries to alter history and all the plans, would be worth it if our son's antibodies really did work for the pre and post pandemic virus. It was the greatest hope of my time zone that we cure _The Scourge _before it decimated the population. If that were true, maybe I could convince the Board of Governors to let us stay with Greg.

I needed to know if he was the answer to the millions of prayers that had been said over the next 250 years. It meant that I needed a sample of my son's blood. If I was pulled out, I might be able to convince the governors to let my son stay with me and we could send back his antibodies to this time zone, where a vaccine could be devised to stop _The Scourge._ I might be able to give him a life by bargaining with his blood.

When I arrived home I made Spinach Soup with French bread. I sat down and waited for Greg to get home. He usually had guys over on Tuesday night to play poker. I would disappear into the bedroom when he did. On Thursday he would spend the evening with Wilson. They'd go out to eat and then maybe a movie or out to listen to music. I loved it because it meant that we both got a break from each other.

But tonight, I needed to talk to him before he went out with Wilson. He walked through the door and threw down his backpack while looking at me. He gave me a gentle but suspicious smile.

"What?"

"I need his blood."

"Who's blood?"

"Our baby's blood. Just a thimble full. I need it so I can run some tests. You need to pull the blood for me."

"Our baby hardly has any blood to take."

I was anxious, talking faster than normal, "In a few weeks, you should be able to get some. You have to promise me that you will."

He exhaled and rubbed his forehead. "Alright. You're right. I'll pull it so that we can see if he's healthy and what anti-bodies he has. Now can I eat?"

"Spinach Soup tonight.'

"Good, I like your Spinach soup."

He ate the soup like there was no tomorrow. Around 7:30 pm Jim showed up. He came in to say hello.

Jim came over and gave me a quick hug, "Marie, I heard you're having a boy. I don't envy you. I can't imagine raising another House."

"Oh, he kicked." I felt it just under my rib.

"That's because he's warning you that he's going to be an ornery one!"

"Oh Jim, he was gorgeous. Would you like to see a photograph that Dr.Booth gave us? We even have the entire film of the sonogram."

"I'd love to see the photo." he grinned, seeing how excited I was.

I got up and grabbed the photo which was now attached to the refrigerator by a magnet. I showed it to him while House grabbed his jacket and hat. I was all smiles.

I handed Jim the photo and he laughed.

"He looks just like a baby! He appears to be healthy and his fingers are long, just like his father's."

"They are, aren't they?" I said, looking at them.

"I'm happy for you Marie. You too House."

"Thanks." We both said in unison.


	22. Chapter 12 part 1Budget Crunch

**Chapter 12**

**BUDGET CRUNCH.**

Wilson looked at House, who was preoccupied in thought, and tapped him on the shoulder, "I asked you if you were happy that you're having a son?"

"I would have been okay with a girl. But, I was glad to see he had long fingers and a good sized pecker."

"Why are you so preoccupied?"

"Marie had a panic attack when she found out it was a boy. She had expected it to be a girl. She's afraid that if she gets pulled back to her time zone, they'll take our son away from her and put him in a Colony for men."

"A Colony for men?"

He shook his head and sulked, "Yeah, a sperm producing colony. Men in her time zone are separated and put to hard labor. They also are ejaculated on a daily basis by means of electrolysis so that their sperm can be harvested."

Wilson's shivered and then his shoulders slumped, "Oh House, I'm sorry. Her delusions are getting worse. What are you going to do? She sounds like she's getting worse."

"Nothing for now. But, it doesn't look good. Pregnancy frequently exacerbates the delusions."

"What if she has a complete breakdown? What are you going to do?"

"I'll raise our son. I'll do what I can to help Marie. Jesus Christ what do you expect me to do? Sell my son and lock her up?"

He paused, looked directly at House, "I don't know House, I just worry about all of you."

"Yeah, you're not the only one."

A familiar female voice rang through the receiver, "House, come down to my office, we need to talk."

"Can't you find someone else to service you?"

"House!" Cuddy was in no mood for his flippancy.

"Give me half an hour."

House made his way down to Cuddy's office wondering what travesty he had committed. He looked through the french doors as he entered and saw that she was alone and working at her desk. She looked up as he entered.

"I don't know nothin' 'bout birthin' no babies Miss Scarlet." House said in his best female voice.

"Sit down." She said, already annoyed at his playfulness.

House sat in the chair across from her and lifted in eyebrows in silent question.

"Your budget. I need you to cut it by 20percent."

He leaned forward, "My department is in the black. Has been for two years. Why do I have to cut my budget?"

"We've had some big losses in other areas, especially the clinic. Federal Funding for it was cut by 10percent. We need all departments to cut back. I'm asking 24percent from most of the departments, but just 20percent from yours. I looked at your budget and 20percent accounts for your research on the Retric virus. Now that we've got the patent on the virus, we can sell our research on a vaccine to a private company for a percentage of their net when they finish the research and develop the vaccine."

"No, I'll cut one of the team, but not the research. I'd never get any nookie if I fired Marie."

She locked her jaw, "This is why you don't sleep with the help or get them pregnant. If you don't do it, I'll let her go. I'll explain why. I've documented everything about the budget cuts, so that there will be no grounds for a lawsuit. I'm sorry House, but this solution gives us the budget cut we need while still getting some reward for our research efforts."

"We can't do this. This virus is recombining and, if it recombines with...let's say an influenza virus...we could have a pandemic that could kill off a good chunk of the world."

She exhaled and shook her head, "You sound like Marie. It ain't gonna' happen House. It's been a low grade virus and if we sell it off, they can find a vaccine and life will go on. Now these budget cuts go into effect at the beginning of our fiscal year, September 1st. So you have plenty of time to try to find a vaccine and Marie a new job. Maybe I can get her a position in the lab downstairs when something opens up. By then, she'll have the baby and she may not want to come back to work."

"Who will pay for the diapers if she isn't working?" House asked facetiously.

"Get out, I have to call in the other doctors to give them the great news." Cuddy waved him away.

House got up and went back to his office. _That vaccine means everything to her. Unless we can find a way to get Cuddy to change her mind, Marie will be pulled off the research. Maybe Cuddy is right. Once the baby is born, maybe Marie won't be so obsessed with finding a vaccine. Who am I kidding, the woman is almost as tenacious as I am when it comes to solving a problem. How am I going to break this to her?_

He got up to go see his patient on the third floor. He was upstairs when Marie walked by outside in the corridor. He grabbed his cane and chased after her. "Marie!"

She turned slightly and smiled. He stopped and looked at her. She had on a sweater that clung to her bulge which now clearly showed that she was pregnant, not fat. She wasn't big, but it hit him that standing in front of him was the woman who would be the mother of his son. She looked happy and excited at seeing him although he couldn't understand why. She saw him every day and he wasn't the best of companions. He frequently failed to tell her what she wanted to hear. But still, she seemed to genuinely care about him and seemed to tolerate his idiosyncracies. She would be perfect if she wasn't delusional.

He smiled back and went up to her. He put a hand over her belly, something he rarely did. She grabbed it quickly and moved it to the right side. He flinched when he felt a solid 'thump' under the sweater. She giggled at the shocked look on his face.

He looked around, slightly embarrassed. He was a doctor, a thump shouldn't have startled him, but it was the first time he had actually felt something. She moved a step closer and House automatically put his arms around her and hugged her. The entire staff stopped to watch. House realized that everyone was staring. He kissed her forehead and pulled back.

He looked sheepishly at the staring staff and then back at Marie, "I have to talk to you, can we have lunch?"

"Sure." she said giggling at his show of affection in front of the staff.

"What are you doing up here?"

"The lab was backed up so they asked me to run some tests, I was just bringing down the results. I find that the nurses are more likely to look at them sooner if they're on paper rather than go through the computer to find them."

He nodded. "Lunch then?"

"Cafeteria?"

He shrugged, "I could take you out."

"Oh dear, this must be serious if you're willing to buy me lunch at a real restaurant."

"It's nothing we can't handle."

"Okay, let's go to _Good Eats_. I haven't seen Cassie or Joe for awhile. I'm sure they'd love to see the bump."

"Come down to my office around noon."

"Bye!"

He watched her walk away and realized that, from behind, you couldn't tell she was pregnant. Her butt was a little bigger, but not by much. He chuckled, she was still randy, wanting him to make love to her several times a week. But it had subsided a little and he suspected that, as she got bigger, it would eventually wane completely. Still, he had been sleeping well the last few months, completely satisfied.

He drove them to the restaurant and when Cassie saw them, she squealed and ran for Joe. They both rubbed her tummy while she stood talking to them. Cassie seated her for lunch and Greg went from being amused at all the tummy rubbing to being serious about the conversation.

"The hospital lost some federal funding and so Cuddy has asked all the departments to cut back. She wants me to cut the research on the virus when we enter the new fiscal year in September. She thinks she can sell your research, make a profit off of whatever the purchaser develops and save the money on financing the research."

House saw her mouth open slightly and her forehead furrow as she thought, "Well, it's a wise financial move, but it's catastrophic for the world. No one knows the virus here like I do. Plus no one will take it as seriously as me. Greg, this means that we either have to find a sponsor or a vaccine by September, one that Cuddy can patent and make money off of. I need that blood."

"I really don't like the idea of taking blood from the baby in-vitro. It could cause a miscarriage."

"You know that's unlikely. I wouldn't risk his health if it weren't important. Now it's even more important. We need to know if his anti-bodies are the answer."

"So you believe that if we can isolate his anti-bodies we can develop a vaccine that will treat this disease, even if it recombines with a more virulent virus?"

"Yes. But it's more than that. If the baby were a girl, I would be skeptical and hypothesize that it was due to the antibodies and also the fact that she has natural protection as a girl. But our son has survived a full onslaught of the virus without aborting. He either has a genetic predisposition to fighting the virus or an environmental one. I need to figure that out. Either way, he will be a healthy male with full immunity. That means that he can father other healthy males. So even if the disease is not completely stopped by a vaccine, it means our son could help propagate healthy males throughout the world."

"Gee, it's a rough job but somebody's got to do it. I hope he gets to do it the old fashion way. I'd hate for him to be electrically stimulated on a daily basis." House wasn't serious, but he could see that Marie was.

"The way its done provides them pleasure. We tried it another way and they revolted."

House snickered, "Marie, that mind of yours. You scare me. I can actually picture this "time zone" you talk about. It's incredible the details your mind has created"

"Here we go again." She was again hurt by his lack of faith in her, "Eat your Reuben."

He realized that she was offended, "I meant it as a compliment. You should be writing novels."

"Greg, this is a living nightmare to me, it's not fiction."

"Okay, okay. I'll shut up about your delusions. Just be careful. Don't start mentioning any of this to anyone else. They'll put you back on drugs to curb your hallucinations and delusions. You don't want that do you?"

She sighed and looked sadly at him, "No."

"Fine. You look good. Healthy, so as long as we keep quiet about your "time zone," I don't think that Dr. Booth will recommend any psych meds."

"Thanks. Are we going to get a new apartment when the baby is born?"

He screwed up his mouth in distaste, "I figure we can move the one dresser into the hall and put a crib next to the bathroom door. It'll work until he gets bigger. I figure after he's born we can take our time and look for something. Okay?"

"I guess. I really don't know what it's like to have a baby sleep in the same room. Some of the books say he can sleep between us so that I can nurse and get some sleep while he's nursing. When he's done, we just both go to sleep."

"I'm not sure I go for the idea of a baby sleeping in the same bed. I'd be afraid I'd squish him. What are we going to name him?"

"I guess it depends on you. My name is my value number which I had been called since I was a baby. Your name was given to you by your parents. How did they pick it?"

"My mother had a brother that died in Korea. His name was Gregory."

"Oh that's cool, naming you after a family member. My family had a lot of females like Katie, Shannon and Maura, but males were few and far apart. We had a Cornelius, Michael, Patrick, Timothy, Adrian."

"My favorite relative was my great-uncle Percy."

Marie tilted her head, "I like Percy. Percy Callahan."

He spoke up, "Hey, if I'm going to be paying for diapers and college, the kid better have my name too."

She tilted her head, "Can he have your last name if we're not married?"

"Sure, he can have any name we give him."

She grinned, "Percy Adrian Callahan-House!"

"His initials would be PACH, like Bach." He looked to the side and then shrugged his shoulders, "Okay." House's face went dark, "Jesus Christ, I better tell my Mom about you or she'll kill me."

"Your mother will kill you?" Marie looked alarmed.

"Just an expression. She'll be very upset."

"Because I'm pregnant? Won't she like me?"

"Not because you're pregnant, but because I haven't told her she'll be a grandmother."

Marie started giggling, "Maybe I should contact one of my relatives and let them meet their great-great-great-great...you know, really great, grandson? I was telling Cuddy that my great-whatever grandmother alive right now would be either Katie or Shannon Callahan. They're from this area and Philadelphia."

"You have relatives in Philadelphia and Princeton?"

"Yes, but none that I know personally."

House was concerned. If she did have relatives nearby, then they may have rights to make decisions about Marie and the baby if her delusions got worse. "Marie, we need to see an attorney about you and the baby to make sure I can make legal decisions if something happens to you." He didn't tell her that they could probably get married and solve everything. House realized that if Marie's illness got worse and she had to be institutionalized, the government wouldn't pay for it if they were married."

"If you think we should." Marie stared through him, "Greg, I have money. I don't know how much, but I have money in a Swiss Bank account. I just can't remember my password. I don't have a bank card or passbook, but I used to know how to get to it from the internet. Is there a way that they could get into an account without a password?"

"I don't know. They'd want to do a background search on you and that might expose your fake birth certificate."

She grimaced, "Damn. If I could get to that money I could fund the research."

"It's that much?"

"I'm not sure. We don't really understand the value of money in our society so I don't know if they put a little or a lot in the account. You see, they funded it years ago during TAP by hacking into the internet and placing a fake account in the system. It's been there since 1996 when they started online banking at this Swiss Bank."

"Well, try to remember it if you can." He finished his Coke, "Come on, we need to get back. It's going to take us ten minutes just to get Cassie to let you leave."

He was right, Cassie talked and patted Marie's belly for ten minutes until her customers started to get mad. House and Marie invited them for dinner and left to go back to the hospital.

House gave Marie a small sedative and took the needle and punctured the umbilical cord to extract some cord blood for analysis. Marie watched on the screen as House completed the procedure. He gingerly removed the needle and then took a deep breath. He had been holding his breath during most of the procedure.

Marie rested until the sedative wore off. House took the two samples to the lab, labeled and refrigerated them. Marie joined him in his office when she felt well enough to walk. She was sitting talking to Winnie and House when Dr. Booth came barging into the room.

She hissed through her teeth, "You took cord blood samples without consulting me?"She was staring in anger at House.

"Yes. I didn't think I needed your permission to obtain samples from my child."

"You ego-driven asshole. You could have caused a miscarriage."

Marie stood up, "Dr. Booth, it was my idea. I was sick when the baby was conceived. The virus I had was possibly a new virus that can cause death and spontaneous abortion. We need to know if our son developed the immunity to it that I did. If he did, we can make a vaccine using his anti-bodies."

"That's ridiculous."

"Actually, the immunity has been passed in-utero. If the child has the immunity there is no spontaneous abortion. If there isn't, then we see spontaneous abortion. In fact, most times, when it comes to the male population, the males are aborted before the mother even knows she's pregnant, which is why you're seeing a decrease in the number of males being born."

Dr. Booth looked sideways at her and then at House, "I don't believe you. If there were a killer virus out there, the CDC would have alerted us to it."

"The CDC knows about it, we've sent our findings, but they don't share our concern over it being lethal. They will when we submit our findings over the next two years, but for now they're just watching."

There was a pause while she thought about it. She said very calmly, "I saw the numbers our department ran on the decrease in males being born. I'd like to see your studies, maybe I can contribute in some way. I could take samples from my adult patients and see which ones have the virus or the antibodies."

"Your help would be greatly appreciated. I've been devising a research project with a control group. I do need women who have had gynecological exams and pregnant women."

She nodded at Marie, but turned and glared at House, "Still, you should have consulted me and asked me to do it. It's common knowledge that you're a brilliant diagnostician and a horrible surgeon. Marie, whenever you have time, just track me down and we'll go over the protocol."

"Thanks."

Marie turned to House, "I like her."

"You like her because she yelled at me." he frowned.

"That's part of it!" Marie walked over and kissed him. I'm going home. Tomorrow is February 14th and we have a party to go to."

"Don't remind me. The last thing I want to do is go to a charity Valentine's Day Party."

"See you at home."

The following day they spent the day looking at Car Seats for the baby. House always grew frustrated when they went shopping. Since Marie knew nothing about babies and baby accessories, all of the choices drove Marie nuts and she'd have trouble deciding. House finally grabbed two of the car seats he thought would work and told her to choose one. She immediately chose the one she thought was the safest and they bought it. He made a note that in the future he could get out of a store a lot quicker if he narrowed her choices.

When they got home, Marie put on her long sleeved jersey empire dress. It was red and had a nice plunge to the front, showing off her new ample bosom. She wore some gold sandals with a 2 inch heel. House wore a dark grey suit with a deep red tie. As they entered they were given a ticket to have their photo taken. Marie pulled House over to the photographer who posed them in front of the large paper heart behind them.

The photographer focused and then said, "Say Cunninglus."

House grinned and Marie willingly said, "Cunninglus," resulting in a very happy photo of two adults holding each other, clearly at ease in each other's arms and smiling broadly for the camera.

The photographer couldn't resist, "I love pregnant women and they rarely have a good photo of them pregnant. If you'll step back by the heart, I'll take a full length photo of you so you can remember how beautiful you are."

Marie looked at House who nodded and gave her a gentle nudge. She walked over to the middle and, as others waited for their photo to be taken, he had her stand at a 45 degree angle to the lens to emphasize the bump. He snapped a few photos and then gave them a receipt. A month later they received the photos and House was the first to open them on the way back to work, after he stopped by the apartment to pick up a book on Sarcoidosis. He had to chuckle, the photo of the two of them together made House look almost like a happy person. The one of Marie alone was beautiful. She looked like a motherly Goddess in her lovely dress, hair piled on her head and bountiful breasts. He kept staring at her, wondering if he would have believed all of this just a year ago?

He took the photo of the pregnant Marie and when he got to work, went into the gift shop, bought a frame and put it on his desk. Everyone who saw it commented on how beautiful she looked and that she really did glow. When she got home that afternoon, Marie saw the opened envelope and was pleased with the photo of her and House, but disappointed that the photo of just her was missing. Still, the photographer hadn't charged them extra to take it, so it was no real loss.

Marie had no reason to go to House's office for several days. When she did, she saw the frame on his desk. It was turned so that he would see it when he was sitting at the desk. She looked and saw that the photo was of her. She was very happy. He had wanted the photo so much he took it before she even had the chance to see it. She wondered what that meant?


	23. Chapter 12 Part 2 Budget Crunch

Marie and House went to the attorney who set up powers of attorney for both of them and set up adoption papers for House as a precaution. He would be listed on the birth certificate as the father, but if he adopted his son immediately upon birth, there would be no question about his legal authority over his son. As soon as Percy was born, the papers would be signed.

Marie was only working six hours a day. Any longer on her feet and her back started to hurt. One day Marie didn't go home. She pushed past the sixth hour and discovered a perturbed House standing over her and her microscope.

"What do you think you're doing you moron? Booth let you work six hours. She wanted to cut it to four. You've been at that thing for nine hours. You need to go home."

She beamed at him, "Greg, look at your son's anti-bodies." She pulled out a strip of protein markers and showed it to him. Without knowing more, it meant nothing to him, but he could see it meant everything to her. "It's just as I thought. He's immune to both pre and post pandemic viruses. He's a miracle."

"Great, save Percy, save the world."

"Have Percy, save the world. I'm almost done for the day. I was just so excited, I decided to run some tests to try and reproduce the protein sequences. We're well on our way to a vaccine. I might even have one by September if Percy doesn't mind donating a little more blood when he's born. Plus I'll have his cord blood too. I'm so excited."

"Finish up and let's get going."

"I'll meet you at home." House had purchased Marie a new hybrid SUV to drive and she found any reason possible to drive it. She loved cars, they were fun. You could sit in your own world, warm or cold air spilling over your skin with any music you desired. It was the perfect environment to think.

When they both got home. He watched her waddle through the apartment, sit on the couch and put her feet up on the coffee table. He brought her a plate of Chinese food that he grabbed on the way home. Something told him it didn't get much better than this.

To House it seemed to go fast, but to Marie the time seemed to drag. Her back was killing her most of the time now and it made it difficult for her to work past four hours. Dr. Booth had tried to get her to slow down and just work a few days a week, but she knew that, for some unspoken reason, Marie was in a hurry to find a vaccine. Dr. Booth had to admit that she was in a hurry too. She was convinced that Marie was right, that this virus was causing women to abort babies, especially males. It scared her.

House and Marie were at a picnic, an informal staff event for doctors at PPTH. Within minutes of setting down the cooler at the table next to Cuddy and Wilson, they began to argue about House forgetting to bring the basket that had most of the food in it.

"You could have brought it!" He yelled, "You're pregnant, not dead. For God's sake, it's just a basket of food. We passed a KFC on the way here, I'll go back and get some chicken."

Marie hissed through her teeth, "But I specifically told you to get it, but you were more interested in those stupid trucks on television. You never listen to me!"

House started yelling at her, "That's because you're always moaning or groaning about something I've done or haven't done."

"That's not fair. You know it's not true. You give me plenty to gripe about, but I don't. I take your abuse, your laziness and your cruel humor." She shook a finger at House.

"Oh, and you're perfect? You..."

"Greg." She yelled.

He put his hand up to stop her talking, "Oh, no...it's my turn to yell at you. Now you have to listen."

"Greg! My water broke."

He stopped and looked down at her maternity jeans and saw the dark patch running down the inner thigh as Cuddy and Wilson ran over to her. Wilson sat her down.

His voice changed to one of concern, but he continued his list of grievances as he looked at her, "Okay. You're no angel, you can't be bothered to give me any room in my own bathroom. You use my guitar that hangs on the wall to hold your purse and you hog the remote control in the bedroom."

She looked up, "You hog it in the living room."

Wilson looked at Cuddy. "Whoa you two...her water just broke. You're going to be parents within twenty-four hours and you're arguing over remote controls and picnic baskets?"

House looked non-plussed. "Well, I'm not going to be a parent just this minute. I might as well get in my licks now. In twenty-four hours I'm going to think she's perfect and can do no wrong."

House and Marie both laughed.

"We better go home so I can clean up." Marie said.

Marie started to feel the contractions on the way home but they were mild and spaced ten minutes apart. When they got home, she got cleaned up, they put the bag out in the living room and sat down to watch television. It was midnight when she woke House, snoring in a sitting position in front of the television, and told him the contractions were 2 minutes apart and that Booth was waiting for them.

On their way to the hospital, Marie called Cuddy, Wilson and Cassie as promised. By the time they got to the hospital, Wilson was already there, waiting for them. Half an hour later, Cassie arrived and a few minutes later, Cuddy did too.

Marie screamed for the epidural and swore having babies was a stupid idea. When the epidural was administered, she laid back and watched the fetal monitor to know when she was having a contraction. Half an hour later as House and Wilson were at the vending machine getting a Red Bull, the obstetrical nurse came running down the hall.

"Dr. House, she just hit transition and the baby's coming fast."

House ran back to the delivery room, his cane clicking at full speed. Wilson grabbed the Red Bull out of the tray and ran after him. As House put on a gown he turned to a winded Wilson, "You can come in if you want. You're a doctor, you've seen it all and Marie's not very modest."

"Are you sure?" Wilson held up his camera, "Is it okay to take pictures?"

House nodded.

They walked up to the delivery bed and House looked down at Marie, who's face was scrunched up in anger. "I just went to get some Red Bull, you could have waited."

She looked up at him and winced, "I threw up when I went through transition and you weren't here."

"Gee and I so wanted to watch that..." House looked at Wilson with a stage look of disgust.

She grabbed his t-shirt, "You better stay now, this is your fault. If you hadn't been so excited in Philadelphia."

"It is the City of Brotherly Love...all those sentiments just pushed me over the edge."

She watched as the monitor showed another contraction. Booth looked up at her, "Push, push...push."

The contraction passed. She looked baffled, "I can't feel anything, I don't know what I can do to push."

House spoke up, "Imagine you're having trouble with a particularly nasty turd that won't come out...push as if you were expelling the nasty bauble."

The contraction came and she took House's advice. Booth nodded, "That's better, that's better. House you better come down here, I see a head."

Wilson stayed holding Marie's hand and giving her encouragement while House went to the foot of the bed. As Marie pushed again, the head started to crown. Booth grabbed Marie's hand and placed it on the baby's head so she could feel.

"Oh!" Marie cried out. "Oh dear!"

On the next contraction she pushed hard and House grinned as he held his son's head in his hands. With the next contraction his shoulders and body slid into his father's arms. House went from laughing to feeling an overwhelming urge to cry.

"Christ. He's perfect. He's beautiful Marie." his voice was wavering as he held his son.

Wilson snapped photos.

They placed the baby on Marie's belly while the cord was tied at two ends and severed, stored in ice and removed for long term storing. Marie petted the baby and looked up at Wilson who was all smiles. House let the nurses whisk a crying Percy over to be checked and to have his nose and throat cleared. He was screaming and squirming and a pretty pink from head to toe.

"Apgar 10. Weight 6 lbs. 11oz, 22 inches." The nurse swaddled him and handed him back to House who took him up to his mom.

She held him and between crying and laughing said, "Welcome little male. Your Mommy loves you very much."

She handed him back to House and Wilson took more photos.


	24. Chapter 12 Part 3 Budget Crunch

House woke up to find himself once again at an angle bent away from the center of the bed. His leg was hurting so he reached over for the Vicodin, taking only one pill rather than his usual two to three. House had been hoping he could eventually wean himself down to a level where he could kick them altogether. He easily found the glass of water from the nightlight that was perpetually on. The little cut outs in the shade bounced light in the shape of stars and moons above their heads. He turned to look and saw Marie in the same position as he was, but in the opposite direction. In between them was a sleeping Percy, happily taking up more than his share of their bed. The crib lay empty just ten feet away.

Percy was two months now and had spent most of his nights in bed with his parents. He seemed to calm down quicker when he was with them and it made it easier on Marie, who had a hard time catching up on her sleep. She was frantic and exhausted, not realizing how much energy being a mother would sap out of her. She hadn't been to the lab since Percy was born and she was worried. She couldn't explain it to House, but she felt an urgency, as if she had to complete her work soon.

House and Percy were good together. Percy was just now able to focus on the silly faces his father constantly made for him. Percy appeared amused, even if he hadn't actually laughed yet. House enjoyed his son most of the time, but had to admit he wished he could catch up on his sleep.

House turned to look at Percy and Marie's back. Percy was perfect, he had perfect little fingers, tiny, tiny fingernails, long brown eyelashes and was, for the most part, bald. He had a tiny patch of downy hair on his head, but from far away you'd swear he was bald. But there was no doubt that when that boy opened his eyes he was House's son. House now understood all the flattery he had received his entire life. Percy's big blue eyes were clear, azure and bright. They were the first things you noticed about him when he was awake.

House thought back and remembered Percy's first month and how difficult it was getting used to being responsible for this small blob of human flesh. House's mother, Blythe, had come out for the first two weeks of Percy's life, leaving House's father, John, at home. John wanted to come, but his doctor had been monitoring his newly diagnosed diabetes and didn't want him to leave until they got his meds balanced.

It had been great having his mother here. She liked Marie, even though she found her a little ignorant when it came to babies. Marie wasn't sure exactly how she was suppose to nurse until Blythe coached her and now she was a natural. Marie was awkward at first with Percy. Holding him stiffly, so stiffly Percy cried and fussed out of sheer trepidation. Marie watched Blythe hold him and started to relax and now she held her son with ease. Blythe was kind to Marie, educating her by telling her "Greg" stories of what she would do with him and how he reacted. She even told Marie about her failures so that Marie would know that motherhood was often a journey of trial and error.

Blythe was holding her grandson and rocking him so that Marie could eat her dinner, "Greg, when are you two getting married?"

Marie's ears picked up, "Do we have to get married now that we have a child?"

House quickly responded while giving his mother a dirty look, "No!" He realized he sounded rather harsh, "You aren't legally required to get married and with the adoption documents being final, there really isn't a reason to get married." He gave his mother a mean look.

"Greg, it gives her and the baby more security. What if something happened to you? Who would support them? How is Marie suppose to get health insurance if she loses her job in September?"

"I'll get her private insurance." But House knew with her pre-existing diagnosis that he would have a hard time finding insurance. If they were married, his policy would cover her. Still, it was too soon to think about that.

Marie laughed. "I've seen those movies where men avoid marriage. Don't worry Greg, I don't want to marry you. It wouldn't be fair to you when they pull me."

"Pull you?" Blythe asked.

House jumped in, "It's a joke between us. Mom, do you think you could watch Percy while Marie and I go to the grocery store. It might be nice for her to get out, even if it is just for an hour to the store."

"Sure."

And that's how House kept his mother knowing that Marie was a delusional time traveler.

House took his finger and followed the profile of his son's sleeping face and chuckled. His skin was so soft and smooth. As he cuddled him, House wondered what Percy would look like as a man, all hairy and musky. Right now he smelled of breast milk and Johnson's powder. He smelled like a baby.

House fell asleep again only to find himself in the same angular position as before when he woke up the next morning. He rolled over and saw Marie smile at him as the baby nursed. House leaned forward and kissed her lips and then got up. He felt guilty, strange, almost as if he was having an out-of-body experience. This couldn't be his life, he was too... happy?

Marie got up after House left and prepared the baby for the trip to the lawyer's office. She had already talked to the attorney over the phone and he had some papers waiting for her to sign. She was drafting a trust for her son in which he would get everything she owned, what little there was, including any rights to any patents. It made Greg the trustee and also the guardian of her son, even though that was redundant considering Greg had already adopted him and was listed as the father on the birth certificate.

She left the office and suddenly felt anxious. She knew that her son had to stay in this century to save his father, Wilson, Joey and all the other males and females who might and would die. She wanted Percy to know that she tried to do everything in her power to make sure he was taken care of and his mother had done what she could to secure his future, even if there wasn't much to leave him. She was trying to prepare for her inevitable pull back to her time zone and praying that she would be allowed to return.

Dr. Booth was now Marie's friend. They worked closely on the research, at first Marie was overseeing her contribution from home. Marie had started working part time at the lab when Percy turned two months. Percy stayed with either his father, mother or even Jim when he was at the hospital.

Glynda Booth liked Marie, but found her a little out of touch sometimes, as if she had lived on a island most of her life. Glynda had even come to appreciate Gregory House. She had more opportunities than most to observe the way he treated Marie and Percy and she had to say, he treated them well. He was a very loving father and he constantly made Marie laugh at his antics. Whenever Glynda was at their apartment she hoped that James Wilson would be there too. He often was. He had come to love Percy and frequently stopped by to see him. Glynda didn't know why House and Marie continued to live in a one bedroom apartment. Wilson had told her that House had plenty of money and could afford to purchase one. But for some reason, he chose to live cramped with a baby in the apartment. Glynda didn't think that would last for long Percy was now four and a half months old and quite a handful. He constantly wanted to be entertained and held.

Marie opened the door to let Glynda make her way inside. She was always happy when Glynda brought her the patient files for imput into the data base. It meant she got to talk to an intelligent woman about many things, something she had missed since slipping back in time. Glynda put her purse down on the couch and handed Marie a file of a young pregnant girl who had recently had a spontaneous abortion in her 14th week. The fetus had been a male.

Marie kept reviewing the first line over and over. There was something familiar:

Name: Brooke Quinton DOB 03/27/87.

"Has this patient been treated for something else at the hospital?" Marie asked Glynda.

"No, she moved here with her boyfriend who is attending Princeton."

Glynda could see that there was something bothering Marie. "Marie? Is there a problem?" Marie shook her head and Glynda grabbed her purse. "Marie, I have to run, but I thought I'd come back tomorrow and show you that DVD, _Smoke Signals_. I think you'll enjoy it."

Marie gave her a pleasant look, "I would like that." They walked to the door, said goodbye and Marie went back to the couch to fold clothes and try to think. She was foldin her fourth onesie when it hit her. The account password was 32787!

She ran to the internet and brought up the bank in Switzerland. It asked for the username. She typed _Scourge. _Password? 32787 Account Name? Marie Callahan.

The account flashed up onto the screen! It requested her current address and email address which she typed in. She went through the account and found that there was $3.8 million U.S. dollars in the account. Marie's blood started to drain, her forehead was laced with little beads of sweat. She heard Percy start to cry. She found the list of services and she requested a transfer of the account. She wanted to pick up Percy and feed him, her milk was letting down from his crying, but she knew that she shouldn't break the connection or it might trigger a hold on the account. She arranged for the money to be wired to her bank account in Princeton, the one in which the trust she had drafted for Percy was the beneficiary if she died. Her milk continued to drench her shirt.

House walked in and looked at her like she was an idiot, "Can't you hear him crying? I could hear him out on the street. For God's sake he's ready to bring the roof down." He walked back and picked up Percy and brought him out to the living room.

She finished the transaction and turned to House, "I'm sorry, but I had to finish this or I might loose the connection. Honey, I remembered my account password! I just had the money transferred from the bank in Switzerland to here."

"I'm happy for you, now can you feed him before his screaming breaks a window?" he held Percy out for her to take.

"Yes, of course. Ah, sweetheart, come here. Mama didn't mean to make you wait so long." Percy latched on and began sucking with a vengeance. House watched and was grateful it wasn't his nipple getting that treatment. It had taken awhile for Marie's nipples to toughen up. They were raw for a long time, causing a lot of pain when Percy would nurse. But she didn't give up and now she seemed to be okay.

House went in and grabbed a beer, looked at Marie rocking and suckling Percy and smiled, "Just like his Dad, nothing like a good drink to shut him up."

She grinned up at House, "I've got enough money to keep the lab open. But if the hospital finds the vaccine, I want Percy to get half the money off the patent."

"Don't tell me, tell Cuddy.'

The following week Marie marched into Cuddy's office with her brief case and stroller, Percy asleep with his pacifier in his mouth. Cuddy smiled at the sleeping Percy. She thought that House's baby was beautiful. When he started smiling a month ago, it made him even more adorable.

"Oh, let me see him. How can I help you Marie?" Cuddy came around and stared down at Percy.

"I want to fund the research on the Retric Virus vaccine. I'll pay for all of it. If we find the vaccine, my son gets half of the profits off of the patent."

"Marie, where are you going to get the money to fund it?"

She handed Cuddy a cashier's check for $500,000. "I figure this will keep the lab funded for a couple of years. I'm close to finding the vaccine, so I don't expect we'll need the full two years. But we can do additional research with the remaining money. Here are the documents I had drafted by a lawyer, sign and we have a deal."

Cuddy's mouth was wide open and her eyes were bulging. "I have to have the lawyers look at it."

"Cuddy, this is important to me. I want this signed within forty-eight hours or the offer is off the table." Marie didn't think it would be a problem. The hospital had nothing to lose and everything to win from being on a patent for a vaccine.

Within forty-eight hours Marie had a signed contract and had just become the largest donor to the Diagnostics Department in its history. The first thing Marie did was to bring a research scientist on board to take her place for the next few months. House didn't care, it was her money. He was a little shocked when he found out just how much she had donated, but he kept his mouth shut. She oversaw the research for the next few weeks and was pleased with the progress they were making.

She didn't want her son's blood drawn until it was absolutely necessary. She knew they were reaching a point where they were going to have trouble completing the research without more blood. The cord blood was gone and a fresh sample would soon be necessary. She eventually scheduled the blood withdrawal for the following Monday. Glynda was going to take it.

It was September, four weeks after she had tapped the account. They were going to have a small birthday party at the apartment for Glynda. Wilson and Glynda had both been invited. Marie had baked a cake and made beef stroganoff because Glynda once mentioned it was her favorite.

"I thought that after dinner we could play some card games. Maybe Whist. It's fun." Marie suggested.

House rolled his eyes and made a face, "I thought you were from the future, not the Regency Period. I've only played Whist once. How about a good game of poker?"

"Maybe we should let the guest of honor pick." Marie turned to Glynda.

"Sorry Marie, but I like poker!" Glynda said.

"A girl after my own heart." House smiled at her. He went to get the cards and the chips from the back. House came out to the hall, "Marie, come here."

Marie got up and went to the bedroom. He was standing over Percy, who was now six months old, looking down.

"You obviously don't need me to find the chips and cards, their in your hands, so what's going on?"

"Shhh." He put his finger to his mouth. He whispered, "I just wanted you to see this."

She looked down in the crib and there was Percy sleeping with his head turned to the side with the bulb portion of his pacifier stuck in his ear. It made it look as if he had a giant earring extending from his ear. Marie started laughing and soon realized that if she didn't get out of the room, she'd wake her sleeping son. They both practically ran out the bedroom door, closed it and started to laugh. House grabbed Marie and gave her a short kiss on her mouth. They turned and laughed all the way down the hall.

When they told Wilson and Glynda, they both had to go back and see for themselves. Wilson took his camera and captured it on the memory card. Unfortunately, the flash also woke Percy up. He started crying his little heart out. Wilson picked him up, the binky dropping back into the crib, and took him out to the living room.

Wilson was repentant, "Sorry Marie. I couldn't resist a photo and the flash woke him up."

"Oh, don't worry it was time for his next meal any way." She grabbed Percy and took him over to the rocker in the corner, put a blanket over her shoulder and started nursing him.

As House dealt the cards, they all started laughing and trying to imagine how Percy had gotten the binky in his ear. Several references were made to him taking after his father, but House quickly pointed out that he wasn't the parent diagnosed as a Schizophrenic, which made everyone, including Marie, roar with laughter.

Marie could feel the milk being pulled from her breast and then there was something else. Her stomach was starting to feel queasy. Percy started screaming. Marie realized that she was in the middle of a blue green wave. She let out a bloodcurdling scream as the waves engulfed her, "_No, God no! Greg, get the baby, get the baby...no!"_

House, Wilson and Glynda all looked into the corner and saw Marie, standing, her hands holding Percy out to House, surrounded by what looked like an electrical wave of blue and green. It was quick, there was no way any of them could have gotten to her in time. She and Percy were gone.


	25. Chapter 12 Part 4 Budget Crunch

Wilson had finally gotten House quieted down with a buttload of Lorazipam. He had been screaming and flailing wildly, tearing up everything in the corner, trying to find them. Glynda was in shock, unable to understand what had happened.

The police were taking the report from Glynda, "I know it sounds crazy, but she just disappeared. The wave swallowed them both up."

The detective told Wilson, "We'll put out an Amber alert for the baby. But my money is on you three. You better get lawyers."

House was on the couch, hunched over, staring at the rug. Every so often he'd get up and look under the couch or out the living room window or up at the ceiling.

"She was schizophrenic, so there's no telling where she went." The other detective said to a very shaken Glynda.

Glynda shook her head crying, "She didn't _go_ anywhere. She was swallowed by the light. She didn't want to go."

"Right lady. Look, we've heard about mass hysteria. I think you guys saw her leave with the baby, know she's unbalanced and so in your mind she just disappeared."

"You are a f#cking moron. You're never going to find my girlfriend and my son." House said it with so much venom the detective almost flipped him off.

The police combed the entire block, found nothing and finally left.

Wilson drove Glynda home and then returned to find House with an open bottle of single malt whiskey in his hand. Wilson was confused and had to admit he wasn't sure what he had seen. He wanted House's opinion.

"What do you think happened?" Wilson was sitting back in the crook of the couch, his elbow and forearms on the back of the couch.

"I think she was telling the truth. I think she got pulled back to the future."

Wilson pulled back, "House, that's crazy!" But he didn't say it with conviction.

"Is it? Look at the facts. Except when she talked about where she was from, did Marie seem crazy to you?"

"No."

"She knew about the virus and had antibodies to variants that don't even exist yet. Right?"

"Yes."

"She predicted a few events while she was here, right?"

"Yes."

"And she was truly like a fish out of water in this time zone."

Wilson nodded.

"More importantly, she told me that this would happen, that when the gate would open it would be a blue-green light in waves like the ocean." He started to cry, "I didn't believe her. All this time and I thought she was nuts. She was so frightened about being taken when she was pregnant . She was afraid that Percy would be taken from her and raised in Colonies. God, I thought she was nuts." He looked up, his eyes red and burning, tears falling on the floor, "Did you see her try to give us Percy? She didn't want him to go with her. The look on her face, the abject horror of not being able to give him to us. My son is going to go to a Colony for men. He'll be raised like an animal, caged in a Colony." He looked up at Wilson as if Wilson could help him. He collapsed again into his hands, shaking and moaning.

Wilson ran his hand through his hair, unable to deal with the reality of it. If House was right, Percy would lead a miserable life. Wilson put his arm around House's shoulder and sat there holding his friend until House was physically exhausted and unable to cry any more.

"What is that?" 11017 asked, her eyes wide open. She darted around Marie like she was holding a snake.

She was too emotional to answer. Her sobbing filled the huge room that enclosed the Time Gate. "_No, no, no. Oh, God, no!" _ She stood up, holding Percy close to her, "You have to send me back. _Now!_ Please send us back." She ran up to Mabel, the tears and snot streaming down. "Mabel, send me back, _please_."

11017 looked at her and then Mabel, "Why is she so distraught? We brought her home!"

Marie tried to choke back the sobs, "I have to go back. I can save the world, I know I can. I almost had a vaccine." She turned around so she could see both of them Her voice was urgent, plaintive, "I can achieve what we all want. Just let me go back."

"123265, what is going on? What is that in your arms?" 11017 was now sneaking up on her, as if to catch the "thing" in her arms by surprise.

She pulled the crying Percy close to her breast and away from 11017, "He's my son. His name is Percy."

"A male? A male baby? Oh my God, it is! it's a male baby!" She stumbled back away from Marie and flattened herself up against the wall. "You were pregnant and delivered a male baby?" 11017 stared in horror at Percy.

Marie stood up straight, "I got pregnant from sexual intercourse with a male that I had a relationship with and forty weeks later I delivered my son." Marie clamped her jaw together and narrowed her eyes, "11017, I love my son very much and no one, _no one,_ is taking him from me."

"You had sex with a male? You let a male touch," her face scrunched up in distaste, "copulate, with you? What were you thinking? Copulating with a brainless, smelly, filthy male?"

"His father is brilliant, witty, handsome and he was kind to me, most of the time. He took good care of us. I want to go back." She started crying again, "We were a family. My son had parents who loved him. I want to go back." She shifted from crying to sobbing again.

11017 looked at Mabel. "Keep her and that, that _male_, here." 11017 was a tall, long haired brunette with a plain face who was known for being humorless. She flew out the door in search of guidance from her superiors.

Mabel crossed the floor and held out her hands to Marie. Marie pulled Percy back at first, but then saw curiosity, not hate, in Mabel's eyes. Marie realized that Mabel had probably never seen or held a baby, let alone a male one. Marie handed Percy to her. Percy stopped crying. She smiled and held Percy close. She looked at his fingers, his little fist, his chin, his face.

Mabel had a huge grin, "He has such beautiful blue eyes. They're so big, so bright, so blue! If all males looked like him, we'd let males live with us." She smiled and handed him back to Marie. "I'm afraid you've really thrown a wrench in things. Bringing a baby back was risky."

"I didn't want to bring him back, I didn't want to come back."

"Then why did you trigger the bank account? That's how we found you."

"I didn't think. I didn't realize that you would trace me that way. I know, I was stupid, but I needed money to find the vaccine. Mabel, my son needs to go back. He has all the necessary antibodies for a vaccine. He's normal, healthy, and his antibodies are killers, they kill the virus before and after the pandemic. He's it. He's the answer. If I can't go back then we have to send him back."

Mabel put her hand on Marie's cheek, "It's so good to see you. I missed you and your stupid wit!"

Marie softened, "Oh, Mabel, they can't send my son away to a farm or Colony." She whimpered a little. She stopped crying and took a breath. She sat down and calmed herself. After a few minutes she looked at Mabel, "I need things for him, diapers and clothes."

"What does he eat?"

"I feed him from my breast. But he also eats soft cereals, bananas, soft food."

She was shocked. "Really? From your breast? Can I see him eat from your breast?"

"Well, he's not hungry now, but he will be in a little while."

47256 and 11017 showed up with Catlin, one of the Governors. Catlin was a fair person. She took one look at Marie and Percy, "Oh dear. It's so good to have you home, but this development is very unexpected. Give me the male."

"_No!_ I can't, I won't. This is my son. I am his mother and it's my duty to protect and nurture him. I won't let anyone take him from me." She saw that Catlin wasn't angry or disgusted. Her voice softened, "Catlin, my son has all the necessary antibodies for a vaccine. He will save the world, but I have to take him back so that his blood can be used before the virus recombines with the flu virus."

Catlin patted her shoulder, "Okay, we'll take all this into consideration, but first let's get you home. You can take your baby with you until the Board of Governors reconvene and make a decision on what to do with him."

Marie looked into her eyes, "I want representation."

Catlin nodded, "Okay, we'll get you representation, you're entitled to that."

"I need diapers, some baby clothes." Marie said.

"I'll have some ported over. Now go get some rest." She started to leave, but turned and smiled, "Before I go, can I hold your baby? I've never held one before."

Marie was reluctant at first, but she trusted Catlin. She handed Percy, who was squirming and starting to get hungry. He looked directly into Catlin's eyes, the blue even bluer from the surrounding blue waves that bounced around the ceiling. And then it happened, he laughed, melting the hearts of all the women in the room.

"House, you can't go around saying that she's gone_ back to the future_. Even if it is true, no one is going to believe you. The cops are going to think you did something to her and the baby." Cuddy was sitting in a chair next to the couch in her office, holding House's hand in hers. Wilson was sitting in the chair opposite her, rubbing his forehead over and over. He missed Marie and her influence on House, but mostly he missed Percy. He was almost as depressed as House.

House was sitting on the couch, "You think it matters what they think? My son is in a society that raises their babies on farms without parents and then the males are shipped to a colony to do hard labor or, if he's lucky, bookkeeping or filing. Let's not forget that the mother of my son will be torn from him. I can't imagine Marie letting that happen without a fight. And I mean a physical fight. I could care less what the police think of me. What can they do to me that would be more painful than this?"

Cuddy was touched, "They aren't going to do anything. You have two excellent eye witnesses and nothing has been found. House, I'm so sorry about Percy. I know how much you loved him."

House kept staring, "Funny, I didn't know if I would love him and now I can't imagine not loving him. What a strange year it's been."

Cuddy gave him a warm smile, "Go home and get some rest. You can come back next week."

"If I go home, I'll just drink myself into oblivion." House got up and went back to work.

The police came again and asked him to come down to the station where he was questioned for the third time. Even Tritter, who joined the police investigators questioning him, told the other detectives, "He's a jerk with few morals, but he didn't hurt his son or his girlfriend. He tends to do things that hurt people emotionally. Physical abuse isn't his m.o."

House was exhausted by the end of the day. He went home to a quiet apartment, walked back to the bedroom and saw the crib with it's Star Wars theme. He smiled when he thought of the day they picked the crib set out. He's wanted trucks, she'd wanted big cartoonish frogs, but when they both saw Darth Vader and Chewbaca on the cover of a complete crib set,she squealed.

Marie turned to him, stunned, "You have the myth of Darth Vader and the Princess who conquered the males?"

He looked at her and scowled, "_No_, we have the story of Darth Vader and the two guys who rescued the Princess."

"I'm sorry, but Princess Leia Organa saves the Galaxy by enlisting the help of several males, but she clearly saved the Galaxy through her leadership and courage."

"Luke and Han Solo save the Galaxy through their wits, strength and power."

"Oh _please_." She said sarcastically.

"Does it matter? Whatever story it is, it's a cool crib set."

"I like it too. I can tell him all about the Princess."

"Yeah, and I can tell him about Emperor Palatine...besides, it's on sale."

The sadness was too much, he laid down on the bed and let the tears come again. He wondered if there would be a day where he wouldn't feel this overwhelming need to sleep to keep from crying.

It only took ten minutes and Marie found herself back in her flat, flying high over the clouds. She immediately realized that she would have to sell her flat if she couldn't get back to 2008. The flat wasn't intended for children, it floated on its own and had few barriers between it and the Delaware River below. It wouldn't be safe for Percy.

Mabel had ported Katmandu back to the flat and he was beside himself. He bounded across the floor and squirmed, his tail moving his entire body out of sheer joy. "Katmandu! Hey boy, ah, yeah...I missed you too. This is Percy. He's almost as squirmy as you!" Marie smiled for the first time since returning.

She put Percy down on her bed so that she could hug and play with Katmandu. Percy was awake and sitting up, so she grabbed him and took him into the living room to check her communivid. She found 152 messages, 3 which were supposedly urgent and 74 which were from friends wondering where she was. She went to the Nourish108 and requested a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The Nourish108 announced that many people were allergic to peanuts and that it would be wise to take a histapill before ingesting the sandwich. She ate the sandwich, drank some orange juice, which she realized was processed and not fresh like at home in 2008, and then she went into the bathroom. Marie threw her clothes on the floor, unable to put them in the recycle. She couldn't part with anything that she had brought with her. She walked through the hydraclean with a naked Percy, indicated that she wanted to be exfoliated, cleaned and moisturized. Within three minutes, she and Percy were done.

There was a musical sound that let her know something had been transported to her mini-dock. She went out and discovered a stack of diapers, baby clothes with a recycle program and a cube that when you touched the button on top, made into a bassinet. She picked them all up, took them to the bedroom, fed Percy, changed his diaper and gathered him up into her arms as she fell asleep.

"123265, this is 47959." The communivid was softly coming alive in the living room. She got up and went to answer it. "47959, how are you?" Marie asked.

47959 was close to 100 and was smiling, "I should ask you that question. You were gone twenty days and look what happened, you bring back a male baby from the past! The Board of Governors is meeting in an emergency session in three weeks to determine what to do with him and what your rights are. No one has had a baby in over one hundred years. It's unprecedented.

Marie didn't smile back, "I asked for representation at the hearing. Will I get a representative?"

"Your representative will be Carrie Anne23 Bay, she's the best there is. She's argued civil rights cases to the governors on several occasions. She knows all the players on the Board. 47256 told me that the male baby is actually quite pleasant for a male. Perhaps I'll stop by and inspect him later. They're going to let you keep him until the hearing. In the meantime, you need to keep a low profile. You gave us a scare, we didn't think we'd get you back. We were jubilant when you triggered the account, you don't know how many people were working on your case. Take care 123265."

Marie fed and cleaned Percy just in time for Mabel and Sarah's arrival. When Marie saw Sarah she fell into her arms and started to cry. Sarah was Marie's closest friend and had grown up with her.

"123265, you had a baby? A baby? I wasn't sure we could even gestate one anymore. Where is it?" She started looking around under things as if it were a small animal.

Marie laughed, "_It_ is in the bedroom doing what _it_ does best, sleep. I'll go get my son."

Sarah cringed, "Son. Ewww. What an archaic word."

Marie brought Percy out and watched as both Mabel and Sarah held him.

Sarah shrugged, "You know I've only seen a male once before. Can I see his genitals?" She smiled sheepishly at Marie.

Marie nodded.

Percy was now awake and so Marie stripped him down to show off his little willy and testicles. The women studied them, touching and pushing them around gently.

Sarah asked, "Do they stay the same size or do they grow with him?'

Marie giggled, "Oh believe me, they grow."

"Having this baby means you had sexual intercourse with a male, right?" Sarahs' nose wrinkled up.

"Yes, I had sexual intercourse and it was incredible. The sensations from it are wonderful."

"But aren't males horrid smelling? And it meant you had to touch him, right?"

Marie sighed. "They're not really smelly. Once you get used to them, men are okay. Just like women, there are some you need to avoid and others that you love being around."

Mabel shook her head, "Oh 123265, you better not talk like that in front of the Governors. You're already in trouble. They're going to come and test your male baby today to see if he really is healthy and has all the antibodies. If he does, it will be the first male to be completely immune to all variants of the disease and produce sperm. He really would be a miracle. I've plotted the outcome and I think if we sent him back, we could save at least half the population, the other half would be in countries where the infrastructures and economies would prevent their population from receiving the vaccine. But, imagine over half the population saved and healthy? It would be the miracle we've looked for all this time!"

"He is that miracle. I've got to get back to 2008, or at the very least, I have to send him back to his father."

"Tell us about his father." Sarah asked.

"I didn't like him at first. He can be very condescending. But he's very intelligent and it turned out in the end that he was very good to me. He adores Percy. I don't think he wanted to adore him, but he did. Mabel, let's look at his history."

They went to the vid screen. Marie gave Mabel House's information.

Mabel had a higher vid clearance than Sarah or Marie, so she sat down and let the screen scan her eye. "Search. House, Gregory. Date of birth, June 11th, 1959. Physician."

Marie inhaled sharply as House's holograph appeared on the screen along with a biohistory of his life. Marie tried to read it, but it became too painful.

"Oh, I see where Percy gets his eyes. Wow, he's very tall." Mabel was referring to the fact that few humans in their time zone were taller than 5'10" and most of them were female. "It says that he never married. That he was suspected of murdering his son, Percy Callahan-House and girlfriend, Marie Callahan, but no bodies were ever found and he was never charged formally. He died of an apparent accidental overdose of painkillers and alcohol in 2014. He achieved a moderate amount of notoriety as a brilliant diagnostician until the disappearance of his son and girlfriend. He spiraled down into deep depression, eventually being financially supported by friends and family until his death in 2014 at the age of 55."

Marie fell back onto the chair, the pain in her chest so overwhelming she could barely speak. "Mabel, we have to send Percy back. He can save the world and he can save Greg. Oh God, please. You have to help me."

Mabel looked uncomfortable, "Marie, I don't know. We have to wait for the Board of Governors. If he really is the miracle, then I'm sure they'll let us send him back. I don't know if they'll let you go back, you're knowledge could alter all scientific development."

She nodded and almost whispered, "I know. I'm willing to just send Percy back."

Sarah put her hand on Marie's shoulder. Marie looked up into Sarah's golden-brown eyes that were framed by her short chestnut hair and angular features. "Marie, I heard Carrie Anne23 Bay is taking your case. She's going to argue for you in front of the Governors. Maybe you should have her represent Percy instead. He's the one that has the need for representation."

"You're right! When she gets here, I'll tell her.'

Percy started to cry and the two women watched in shock as Marie, now naked like the other two women, simply held Percy up to her breast and he latched on.

"Does that hurt?" Sarah asked.

Marie chuckled, "At first your nipples are sore, but they toughen up and now it doesn't hurt at all. It's quite lovely holding your child and watching them get nourishment from you."

Mabel chuckled, "It seems strange, we haven't used our breasts in over a century for that purpose. I almost forgot that that's what they're for."

The vidscreen came on again. "123265, this is Carrie Anne23 Bay." Her kind face filled the large vidscreen. I'd like to come and see you in an hour."

"Yes, Carrie Anne23, that would be great."

Mabel and Sarah eventually left, but told Marie they would be back that night to hear what Carrie Anne23 had to say. Marie was sad to see them go. They were the two people she could trust the most with everything that was happening to her.

Percy played with his mother for a few minutes and them fell asleep in her arms. She stared at the larger than life holovid of Greg's face on the screen and thought of how much he must miss them. How he now must believe her. As the history read today, he obviously did nothing with her research and since they would have needed more of Percy's blood to develop the vaccine, the research probably went nowhere. Knowing Greg, he was in too much pain to care if anyone else lived or died anyway. She would have to ask Mabel how much history had been changed just by her being there over a year. On her way to her flat, she had seen more people in the streets, but they were still women. Obviously, her slip had caused some kind of a ripple, but what she didn't know. Men were still in Colonies.

Marie wasn't sure what Carrie Anne23 Bay would be like, but when she entered the flat, Marie immediately liked her. She was pleasant, shorter than Marie and carried a little more weight on her petite frame, but not much. But her quick smile and sharp eyes told Marie that Carrie Anne23 was intelligent and was excited by the challenge.

After the pleasantries were over and Carrie Anne23 sat with her cup of tea, she looked up at the vidscreen. "Who is that male?"

"Percy's father."

"For an older male, he's good looking. It's those eyes, isn't it? Does Percy have his eyes?" Percy had been asleep ever since Carrie Anne23 arrived.

"Yes, he does. They're beautiful." She turned back to her, "Carrie Anne23, I want you to represent my son."

"Your son?"

"Yes, his rights are more important than mine. He is the solution to _The Scourge_." Marie told Carrie Anne23 the whole story, the conception, the disease, the miracle that was contained in the tiny 16 lb. baby that lay sleeping in the basinet.

Carrie Anne23 listened and was moved by the love and sorrow in Marie's voice. She wondered if all mothers had felt this for their babies? If so, the loss of their children, their husbands, their families to _The Scourge _must have been a sorrow so great that the entire world dripped in their tears.

"I understand. I'll represent him. I will try, at the very least, to get them to let him stay with you. But, if his tests show he is the miracle you say he is, then I will argue strenuously, to whoever will listen, that he be allowed to return to his father and that you go with him.I want you to understand that you're up against a lot of prejudice. You didn't just have a baby. You had a male baby. There's many Governors that not only fear males, they hate them too. I know two that have advocated the annihilation of the male population and that we resort to genetic engineering to keep the population at status quo."

"But that flies in the face of the creed to restore the human race to a natural balance."

"Yes, but several of them think that the creed is antiquated and unnecessary. They don't want a natural balance. They don't want males to gain equality and they especially don't want to have to copulate with males."

Marie laughed, "They don't know what they're missing."

Carrie Anne23 smiled, "I find it hard to believe it feels as good as you claim, but your child is living proof that you would know. Well, I have a lot to do. I better get busy." She got up to leave when Percy started to cry.

"What's that sound?"

"It's the baby, he's crying for me to pick him up. It's not time for feeding, so he must need to be changed.'

"Can I stay and observe?"

"Sure."

Carrie Anne23 walked with Marie into the bedroom She saw a red faced screaming blob on the bed, but Marie treated it like it was gold. She picked it up and looked into its eyes and said sweet things and sounds that made the baby quiet. Carrie Anne23 looked into Marie's arms and the only thing she saw was two beautiful blue eyes staring at her. Carrie Anne23 was amazed, not only at the clarity of the blue, but of the obvious intelligence. The baby smiled at her and she stepped back in shock.

"Was that a smile? _Did he smile at me?"_ she asked Marie.

"Oh yes, he's even laughing these days. Would you like to hold him?"

"I don't know how."

"Easy." Marie showed Carrie Anne23 how to hold the baby.

When Carrie Anne23 took Percy in her arms she marveled at the warmth and weight of the baby. He reached up with his little fist towards her chin and smiled again. Carrie Anne23 was enchanted. _So this is what it's like to hold a small human being in your arms. I can understand the attraction. If he were mine, I'd want to keep him safe too._

She handed Percy back, "I'm glad I stayed. I understand now. Marie, I'm frightened for you and Percy. There are strong forces on the Board of Governors and they are not going to want a baby boy allowed lose in the streets. At the very most, these Governors, might let you go live in a Colony with the baby."

"As long as he's not alone. But the best thing for him is to send him back."

"Okay, I'll try. Goodbye Marie. Goodbye Percy." She touched a finger to Percy's little cheek and laughed. "He's very addictive, isn't he?"

Marie nodded.


	26. Chapter 12 Part 5 Budget Crunch

House was having nightmares. He was on a ship in the ocean. Marie was floating above him and trying to throw Percy to him as she floated into the heavens. He always missed and Percy would end up in the ocean. He woke up in a sweat, with his heart beating and his muscles aching. The dream took him from being overjoyed at the sight of Marie and Percy to the abject horror of losing them both again. His body couldn't handle much more. It needed a release from the stress.

House had tried to moderate his drinking, but over the last few nights, it had gotten harder. He found he couldn't stop at one or two. Last night he couldn't stop at three.

His leg was throbbing and shooting pains into his back. He had upped his Vicodin just to get through the next few nights. He needed real sleep, sleep that was uninterrupted by painful dreams of loss.

Wilson was still stopping by at odd hours to make sure that he hadn't found a rope or purchased a gun. House knew he'd never chose such a quick means of death. He'd want to suffer, to know that he was dying. Maybe then he could feel something other than the pain he was feeling now.

He was still functioning, barely, at work. It had only been one week and one patient, but they had managed to diagnose the woman and treat her. The only respite he had experienced all week, was the three hours he spent staring at the wall and considering all of the woman's symptoms.

House couldn't bring himself to get rid of anything just yet. He kept hoping that she would find a way to come back. But he knew the longer it went without them showing up, the less likely she was coming back.

Mabel was tired of hearing her beg. "Send him back. Please send him back." She was tired of hearing Marie cry. If Mabel hadn't been captivated by Percy, she would have stopped going to visit a long time ago.

It had been three weeks since 123265 had returned with the anomaly known as Percy. Mabel loved to watch the baby grow and learn. She enjoyed holding him and cleaning him. Mabel realized that something very maternal had been released inside of her the first time she held Percy. Sarah had mentioned the same thing. Mabel now knew that women were suppose to feel this way. Protecting this strange little creature had become important to all four of them.

Carrie Anne23, Sarah, Mabel and Marie were united on one thing, Percy must not be forced to live away from Marie. Carrie Anne23 was becoming more and more disillusioned. Over the last two weeks she had learned several disturbing things. "Thirty-eight out of one hundred of the Governors have recently introduce legislation to phase out all Colonies. In other words, viable male embryos will no longer be allowed to grow. They will be killed before their first week of division. The current population of men will be allowed to grow old. They will not be killed so that the anti-death segment of the Governors will not be alienated. But there will be no males to take their place."

"Marie's hand covered her mouth and her eyes grew wide, "My God, I can't believe this."

Carrie Anne23 shook her head, "It's even worst. In addition, there is an even larger segment of the Governors that secretly do not want to save the world from _The Scourge_. They recognize that, if you or anyone else went back and actually eliminated _The Scourge_ before it devastated the earth, then history would be forever changed and their very existence would be in question. If the world was saved, it is doubtful that they would be alive, let alone in power."

They were all shocked. The populace had been indoctrinated to believe that going back and saving the world was the ultimate good and, even knowing that their existence might cease, the populace strongly supported the idea of altering history. But the Board of Governors weren't as enthusiastic as the general population. The Board of Governors had given the populace the outside appearance of supporting TOP, but secretly they were hoping it would prove as fruitless as it had over the last sixty years.

"I know for a fact that most of them have a strong desire not to change history. We won't win this battle unless we get support from the populace. But, I fear that if we take the battle to the public, your life and Percy's will be in danger. I hate to say this, but I believe that the Board of Governors will find a way to eliminate the threat of altering history, _even if it means killing the two of you_."

Mabel held Percy close to her, "They wouldn't do that! How could they destroy this little creature? He holds so much promise for the world."

Carrie Anne23 sighed and said in a grave voice, "We have some supporters on the Board of Governors and they have given me this information at great peril to their own lives. I'm afraid it's true. Our only hope of getting their vote is to take the matter public. If we do, we risk both of your lives."

Mabel was beginning to understand. Marie was numb. Sarah was worried.

"Hi Greg." He recognized her voice immediately.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

Stacy walked in, smiled warmly and sat down, "Lisa called me. She told me everything. I came down to see if there was anything I could do to help."

"Got a time machine in your handbag there?"

"You don't really believe that she's traveling in time with your son?"

House didn't bother to answer. He didn't need anyone else's confirmation of what he knew was true. He just smiled and shrugged.

"Look, if the police try to do anything or harass you, I have a friend who lives in Newark. I talked to him and he said he'd take your case and represent you. He can make their lives just as miserable. He's very connected. He gets put through to the governor every time he calls. So just say the word."

He looked at her sitting with her legs crossed and her hands white knuckling the arms of the chair. "Thanks." He leaned back in his chair, "Where's Mark?"

"School. I told him I was coming. I don't think he sees you as a threat anymore, not since you had the baby. I saw a photo of the baby, actually photos. Jim's quite enamored with your baby isn't he? I've never seen someone with that many photos of a child that isn't his."

"He was there where Percy was born. He thinks he's a surrogate father."

"Percy? Percy? I still can't believe you named him after your great-uncle. And your girlfriend let you?" she chuckled.

"In her time zone she goes by numbers. Names were hard for her to come up with."

"Someone should have warned her about the name Percy." Stacy gave him a stern look.

"I like Percy."

"I know _you_ do. You and maybe a dozen other morons."

"Hey, that's my sons name you're defaming."

She smiled. She reached up and grabbed the photo on his desk. She saw a short, petite woman with a sweet, petite face. She had a smile that made her look innocent and kind. But her posture told Stacy that she was no pushover. She would give House a run for his money...probably did. "She's beautiful." Stacy looked at the pain in his face, "I'm sorry Greg."

"Yeah, so am I."

"Up for lunch?"

"I need to finish this and then I can go."

"Okay, I'll go bother Lisa."

She left and House held the photo of Marie in his hands. It hit him. He had never told her how much he loved her. He had never said that one little word to her. He had told Stacy many times. But the one woman who deserved to hear it, that should have heard it from his lips, had never heard it at all. God, he wanted another chance, another moment with her. He just wanted to hold her, tell her that he loved her. _Love–this is love–love you_. _Marie, I love you, I love you._

The lunch with Stacey only made him sadder. He realized that he no longer wanted or needed Stacy or the emotional support she had to offer. He was grateful that she had come, but it made no real difference in his life. Right now, the only thing he needed would be to have his family back.

That evening he received a call on his cell phone. It was his daily call from his mother. "Hi Mom."

"Hello honey. Any news?"

"No Mom, they're still missing. No leads, nothing to report."

He heard her start crying again. She cried every time she called him . It was funny how attached she had become to her grandson. Since his birth, she had spent almost all of her waking hours doing something for her grandson. Marie was always showing him toys or clothes that his mother had "found" and just had to send her grandson. It had given him great pleasure to know that both his parents were doting on his son His father had packed up most of his Marine Corp medals and sword and sent it to his grandson. House had actually been quite moved by this. He knew his father would never had parted easily with these things. Now his Dad had a hard time talking to him without choking up and his mother always dissolved into sobs. It was hard taking the calls, but it was his mother, he couldn't avoid her. Not when she needed him to tell her what was going on.


	27. Chapter 13 Part 1 Gravestones

**CHAPTER 13**

**GRAVESTONES AND OTHER MESSAGES**

I don't think I could have survived those three weeks without Mabel, Sarah and Carrie Anne23. They were my anchors. Each held down a different part of me so that I didn't go crazy. Mabel loved Percy. It was surprising to see how each of them responded to him. Mabel couldn't do enough for him. She begged me to let her baby sit him while I went out to get provisions and just to get some exercise. The minute she walked through my door she searched the flat for Percy. He adored her too. His face would light up and he would giggle, making Mabel just beam.

Sarah wasn't as enamored with Percy as the others. She liked him, but she didn't _have_ to hold him or play with him. She was fine just coming to see me. But she gave me encouragement, love, support and let me cry as much as I wanted. She was a good friend.

Carrie Anne23 enjoyed Percy and frequently ended up on the floor or couch playing with him. She was my champion. She was lobbying everyone she could think of on behalf of Percy. But I could tell it was taking a toll. Her eyes were frequently bloodshot and her clothing crumpled like she had forgotten to recycle them. I knew things weren't going well. She frequently talked in hush tones with Mabel only to turn around and smile at me, trying not to stress me out. Our hearing was coming up and none of us had a good feeling about it.

The Board of Governors had even offered to give Percy a position in an Colony office when he grew up. It would afford him more perks and insure he would probably live longer. I just had to give up my rights to him and keep my mouth shut. They assured me that if I didn't win my case, Percy would be slotted for a space at the Bisbee Copper Colony working in 110° heat six days a week.

I was so nervous and distressed that I kept throwing up. I couldn't keep much down and it was interfering with my milk production. Percy was getting cranky trying to get the last ounce of milk out of me. I finally realized that, even if I threw it up, I had to keep eating and drinking for my son's sake. I eventually started putting back on the eight pounds I had lost on my short frame.

"Mabel. I need your help," I said.

She was laying watching a vid in my living room with Percy balanced on her chest asleep. She turned her head to look at me. The expression on her face didn't change at all, she nodded, "I know what you need and you don't even need to ask. We just need to come up with a plan to make it happen." She got up and put Percy in the middle of my bed which was now pushed next to the wall. I didn't have a crib, so he slept with me.

She came out. " I have something to show you. I found it yesterday when I was doing some research for Carrie Anne23." She went to the vid, scanned in her eye for access and then brought up a holograph of an old cemetery full of markers and monuments that appeared to go back centuries in the past. "The cemetery doesn't exist anymore, this was a vid taken 70 years ago before they dug everyone up and ejected them into space. It was one of the Princeton cemeteries."

When she said Princeton, my heart jumped and skipped a beat. She angled the vid for a closeup of a monument. She zoomed in and then turned and smiled. I started sobbing. The stone was a polished gray granite, only three feet high at most, it simply said,

**Gregory House, M.D.**

**June 11, 1959 - September 3, 2014**

_**MY ONLY REGRET IS THAT I NEVER**_

_**TOLD YOU I LOVED YOU...**_

"You know, if we do what we're going to do, this monument may never exist. He may stop drinking and taking drugs if we're successful." Mabel said with a very warm smile.

"Thank God. I know, I can only hope. I believe a lot of things will be different. Are you okay with that?"

"I have been ever since I saw Percy smile." Mabel

"You know, if we do this, you'll be in a lot of trouble." I said, warning her.

She laughed, "It's not going to really matter is it? "

I thought about it and she was right. It wasn't going to matter. It was highly unlikely that any of this would matter.

I was nervous, trying to say just the right thing. I didn't want to be maudlin or melodramatic, he wouldn't approve of that. I wanted it to be gentle, truthful and loving.

"Damnit Marie, hurry and get the damn thing written." Mabel was already getting nervous and anxious.

I began thinking into the Mindcatcher. It took me another fifteen minutes but I was okay with what I said.

"Alright, I'll take care of this, you just keep the Board of Directors and TOP people occupied." Mabel said as she continued to fiddle with her equipment.

It was the big day of the hearing. I was expected to testify and tell everyone what happened and why Percy and I should return. Carrie Anne23 had warned me that the vote was not going to be even close. They were going to turn me down. I would not be allowed to return. She wasn't so sure about whether they were going to turn down sending Percy back, but she wasn't hopeful. The most she said she could hope for is that she would get them to back off on the Bisbee Copper Colony.

I was naked, my breast large from my milk production. I didn't try to hide it. I wanted them all to see what a woman's body really was designed to do. I wanted to make it real for them. Make them understand how sterile our lives had become.

The hallway was packed with people staring at us as Carrie Anne23 and I went by. Most of the women were naked too, but no one's breasts were swollen like mine. My nipples were tough and large. Women were whispering about me. I figured if the hallway was this packed, the hearing room must be bulging with everyone associated with the Governors and TOP. I realized that just about every Surveyor, Governor and their assistants were there.

I had been informed that I should not bring Percy to the hearing. Many of them felt uncomfortable around males, even male babies. Others had heard that he had charmed just about everyone who saw him and they didn't want that to happen to the Board of Governors.

I had given Percy over to Mabel just minutes before. I was still sniffling. The scene had been rough and I tried to put it out of my head. He had been so sweet, staring at me with those damn blue eyes. I kissed him all over and held him. I let him nurse as long as he wanted until he slept. I took a good whiff of him and loved that he still smelled like my baby boy. His hair was growing in a little and it was going to be a sandy blonde. I kissed him again and with huge tears falling on his little belly, I handed him to a crying Mabel. It was an emotional day. A lot would be decided about our fates.I started to leave Mabel and Percy. As I did, I took one last look at a sleeping baby laying in the arms of a clothed Mabel, holding him dear and crying her heart out. We exchanged nods and I left to join Carrie Anne23 and Sarah at the hall.

When I had gotten to the Hearing Hall, we all hugged and cried together. We knew that this was an important day in so many lives. I loved these two women and Mabel. I loved them like men love their army buddies. We were in the trenches and we were bound together to do the right thing.

House was surprised by the voice on the other end of the phone. It was Tritter.

"Dr. House?"

House sighed, he had no emotions left to deal with Tritter, "What do you want?"

"I've been working the case with the other detectives and I wanted you to know that we haven't turned up a clue. The only thing we discovered is that no one in El Centro, CA has ever heard of your girlfriend even though her birth certificate claims she was born there. Unfortunately, there was an earthquake in 1992 which destroyed several civic buildings and lots of records were lost in the storage and moved to other buildings. So, it's possible she was born there, but more likely that she wasn't. We do know that she had a huge sum of money in her trust account which was left first to your son and then, if he was dead, to PPTH to research the _Retric_ virus." He said the word Retric as if it were a joke. "So, you're in the clear. None of the money was to come to you if she died. Did you know that?"

"I didn't even know she had any money left. I thought she had given it all to the hospital. How much did she have?"

"She had approximately $3.1 million dollars."

"_What? Three million dollars?"_

"Yep. It's a lot, but you don't get it."

House was pissed that Tritter would think he wanted the money. "I _don't_ want it. I _want_ my son and my girlfriend back."

"That's good to hear. Her lawyer confirms that she kept all of it secret from you. We believe you when you say you didn't know. I'm sorry, Dr. House, we just don't have anything else to report. I really am sorry."

House knew Tritter meant it. Even he had a heart when it came to a missing baby. "Thanks." House hung up.

House knew they wouldn't find anything. He knew exactly where his son and girlfriend were and there was no reaching them. It was 5:00 pm, time for a drink. House grabbed his keys and drove home, trying to decide if his new best friend for the night was John Walker or James Beam.


	28. Chapter 13 to end Gravestones

**_Dear Readers, _**

**_This chapter marks the end of the story, but there is a ten page epilogue to follow. I will post it right after I post this. Please leave me feedback. I hope you enjoyed the story, I enjoyed writing it. But remember, the only payment we receive is your feedback. Thanks, Gorblimey2_**

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House hadn't drank as much as he hoped. Wilson had made one of his, "Just in the neighborhood visits" and convinced him to go to the movies. When he got home, he was emotionally exhausted, and just wanted to sleep. Sometimes he could sleep without dreaming about them. Those were good nights, nights when he could wake up normally, without screaming and crying. They didn't occur very often, but he could always hope.

It was mid-February and he had put his down comforter on the bed the night before. He got back in bed and realized the clean sheets he had put on yesterday were the ones on the bed when they had been pulled. It had taken a month after they disappeared before he finally changed the sheets. He had been reluctant because they smelled like the baby and Marie. But his side was beginning to smell really ripe and he couldn't take it anymore. He kept some of her dirty clothes, with her smell, and packed the rest up for the thrift store she shopped at. He still hadn't gotten around to the baby stuff yet. It was harder to handle it. He hadn't even had the Kilim rug cleaned from where Percy had puked on it. Wilson promised that he would come over on Saturday to help him go through the baby stuff.

"We can store his stuff if you think they're coming back."

House shook his head, "If they were coming back, she would have come back by now. Besides, he's months older and these clothes probably wouldn't fit."

"We'll deal with all of this Saturday, you just get some sleep." Wilson picked up his keys from the table and walked out the door leaving House to his own devices.

House went to bed but he wasn't getting much sleep. His leg hurt and he kept seeing Marie. It was a strange dream. Instead of her crying, screaming or trying to get him to take Percy, she was smiling, calm, happy. Percy wasn't with her. But she was content anyway. House sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed his forehead. He needed some Vicodin. He looked around for some water, his throat was dry. He got up and walked the dark corridor out to the kitchen, turned on the light and got a glass of water.

He heard a very faint sound from the back. He stopped and listened, but there was nothing. He grabbed the water, took a Vicodin and hobbled to the back. His light was on, making it easier for him to see. He was concentrating on his path when he looked up and screamed.

"Ahhhgg." He spilt the water all over himself and the floor. He hurriedly put the water down on the night stand and reached for his son, laying in the middle of his bed.

"Percy!" He grabbed the now shocked and crying baby. "Percy, where's your Mom?"

He clutched Percy to his chest, "Marie? Marie?"

House went through the entire apartment and around outside looking for Marie, but she wasn't there. He was breathing hard. Where was she? After holding his son for an hour he realized that he hadn't grown very much. It just confirmed to him that Percy had been in the future.

"Where is your Mom? Is she coming?" He sat down and thought about it, "Damn, I need to get you some food." He smiled as he dialed the phone. "Wilson? Guess who dropped in?"

Within an hour, Wilson showed up with formula and disposable bottles.

"Thank God you got here, he's starting to get cranky." House handed Percy to Wilson and was moved when he saw Wilson start to cry. "Hey, this kid has seen enough tears to last a lifetime, try singing to him."

Wilson sang to a cranky Percy while House prepared a bottle. When they finally gave him a bottle, something Percy was not too happy about at first, they looked at each other and smiled with a sense of relief. Relief that Percy was home and healthy.

"What do you think happened?" Wilson asked.

"I don't know, but maybe she'll be joining us soon." House said with real hope in his voice.

"I hope so." Wilson was just grateful that Percy came back. It would give House something to live for. He could already see life back in House's eyes.

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House notified the police the next morning and the rounds of interviews began again. They grilled him as he sat in his office. No one believed that he simply found his son on his bed, but House didn't care. Cuddy and Booth were cuddling Percy in the outer office. More cops were probably at his apartment searching it. He had given them permission as long as they didn't destroy anything and put it all back this time.

House kept smiling whenever he saw his son. The joy of holding him, smelling him and touching him was only dampered by the fact that Marie wasn't here to enjoy it with him. He wanted the cops to leave so he could get back to holding his son. It took another hour, but they finally left.

Cuddy came in, "He's almost the same as when he left. He didn't grow much did he? We should run some tests."

Dr. Booth agreed, "He is small for his age and he's mentally about the same as when he left."

House laughed, "He's okay. He'll catch up and turn out to be normal...okay, he's my son, maybe not normal, but he's not retarded."

Booth frowned, "I'm taking him with me upstairs. I want to run some tests. I'll have him back in an hour."

House shrugged his shoulders, a check up couldn't hurt, "Fine, I'll be here."

They left and House began to filter through his email. There was one with no subject line. He almost deleted it because he was afraid of viruses. But the new virus software was pretty good about catching things. He took a bold move and opened it,

Dear Greg:

By now you have Percy back. When I was pulled back to my time zone, no one knew what to do with him. For the last two months my Representative (you'd call her a lawyer) has been waging battle to let Percy and I return back to you. Or, at the very least, to let Percy return. The Board of Governors knows that he has the necessary antibodies to save most of the world from _The Scourge._ Sadly, this fact is probably the very thing that will keep them from letting him return.

We have discovered that, although the Board of Governors have publicly and financially supported the TAP and TOP programs, they really have a vested interest in letting things stay the way they are. You see, if Percy is the answer, then sending him back (several have conspired with me to do this) will forever and dramatically alter my time zone. The people who make up the Board of Governors will most likely no longer exist. They are not comfortable with that fact, even if it means saving most of the world.

I sent Percy to you because it is my greatest desire that you continue my research and find the vaccine. I know that you're bright enough to realize that by doing so, I will probably no longer exist. This world, as I know it, will no longer exist. But it is the price I am willing to pay and want _you_ to pay to save the world from _The Scourge_. If, by chance, I still exist after sending Percy back, I will send you a second email letting you know. If you don't receive it, you'll know I ceased to exist in this time zone.

I know you love me and it gives me great joy knowing that I have been loved. Please know that, even though I may not exist anymore in the Universe, while I did, I loved you and our son dearly.

I want you to find someone else. I want our son to have two parents who love each other. Please be happy. Show Percy what happiness can look like, he deserves to know.

I'm going now to the hearing. I have to keep everyone occupied while my friend, Mabel sends Percy to you. I'm praying he lands safely. We're aiming for the bed! Now that you're a single father, get off the Vicodin, cut down on the booze and take good care of our son. Please tell him his mother loved him. Tell him not to feel guilty about any of this. It gives me great joy to know that he will save the world.

Love,

Marie.

House couldn't breath. He turned in his chair and then realized that if she was alive, the email was probably among the others he hadn't opened. He searched the forty-two emails he had received, one by one for word. But there were no more emails from her.

Wilson came in and right away he knew something was terribly wrong. House printed something out for him.

"What is it?"

"Just read it."

Wilson kept shaking his head. His heart was in his throat. He was grieving for his friend, for the little baby, for Marie. He couldn't believe what he was reading. "Is there another email?"

House shook his head.

"Oh God, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Maybe it will come later. Who knows how hard it is to send messages from the future. Maybe it will be like Percy, you'll get it in a month or two."

House snickered and shook his head, "I would have gotten it by now."

But for every day after that, until he died, Gregory House checked his email and then when email became vidmail, he checked that too. He waited and hoped for a message that never came.

The End.


	29. EPILOGUE

**Epilogue**

House opened the door, "Hey Dude! What's up? You and Uncle Wilson have a good time at _Sesame Place?"_

"Daddy! They had Big Bird! And Elmo held me!" Percy's sandy brown bangs framed his big blue eyes. He waved a toy at his father and ran into the living room.

Wilson looked worn out, "He spent most of his time in the wading pool, thank God. It gave me a chance to sit down while he played in the wading pool and take a break. I took photos. I'll download them and give you a disk."

"I have so many disks of your Percy photos, I think you've captured just about every breath he's taken. Hell, you even have photos of him picking his nose." House moaned.

Wilson ignored him, "Did you find anything?"

Wilson walked in, put down the backpack with Percy's things and joined House in the livingroom. Percy ran to his father's chair and climbed into his lap. House pulled Percy over to his good leg, "No. I saw five houses. Nothing appealed to me. I may have to resort to using a realtor."

"I told you to hire one in the first place. But no...five months later, fifty house viewings and you're still in this one bedroom apartment with a three year old. Christ House, the kid needs some room. He's a handful."

"You're telling me? Just try being with him as much as I am." House said it to his son, giving him noogies on his head as he did.

Wilson threw up his hands frustrated, "I told you that I'd take him more often. He has a room at my house, he can stay there any time; but no, you insist on cooping him up in this place."

House was just as frustrated, "I send him over at least one night a week and you get him when I have a patient, you should be happy. Hell, divorced Dads don't even see their kids that often."

Wilson exhaled. He smiled at Percy sitting in his Dad's lap playing with his Elmo and Fire Engine combination. "All I know is that he's the richest kid in Princeton and he lives in a one bedroom apartment with his curmudgeon father."

"We're happy. Aren't we dude?" House crossed his eyes and gave Percy a goofy grin. Percy laughed.

"You two need to find you a woman."

House nodded towards Percy, "Thanks, but he still hasn't figured out how to get that condom on." House looked at Percy, "We're working on it, right dude? It's just a lot of rubber to cover that tiny pecker of yours, huh?"

Percy nodded in unison with his father. Wilson chuckled.

"I saw a house over by mine that just put a _For Sale_ sign on it. It's less than a mile to the hospital, great schools and I took a peak, it has a nice, big back yard."

"Right and it probably comes with a dead body."

"It's a "For Sale by Owner." You ought to drive by and check it out. Just see if you _might _like it."

"Yeah, yeah. Hey did you feed the Percmeister?"" Percy looked up at his Dad and grinned at the name.

"Oh I crammed just about every item on the menu down that gullet. Your kid is a bottomless pit. Oh get this. We're sitting there eating and he walks over to this little girl and her parents and takes a french fry off of her plate." Wilson started laughing. "I had to apologize, but you have to laugh. This kid is so much like you it's scary."

House was laughing softly and shaking his head, "What can I say?"

Wilson stood up. "I have to admit the kid is a chick magnet. They see a child and no mother and ka-ching, you're the newest flavor of the month. Well, I'm beat. I'll see you on Monday. Make sure you take a drive by that house. Okay?"

"Yeah, yeah." House pushed Percy off so that he could get up. He walked Wilson to the door and saw him out. Once Wilson was gone, House sat down on the ground and let Percy climb back in his lap. Within a few minutes, Percy and House were both asleep, in a position familiar to both of them.

House woke up, scooped Percy up under his free arm and carried him into the bedroom. A cranky Percy looked up at his Dad, "Dude, do you need to pee?"

Percy nodded. House waved for him to go to the bathroom and Percy took off. House heard a little tinkling in the bowl and smiled. "Now brush your teeth." Percy climbed the step stool and did as his father told him.

He came out and House threw him his pajamas. "Get those on."

Percy put them on and then climbed in on his side of the bed. "Daddy, tell me the story of Princess Marie who saves the planet."

House smiled, "Ah, my favorite story. Well, you see, there was a beautiful blonde princess who decided that someone had to go back in time and fight the evil Retric..."

House told his son the story of Princess Marie while he looked up on the dresser at the framed photo of Marie and House on Valentine's Day. He smiled and crawled on top of the bed to continue the story.

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House put Percy in the back in his car seat and adjusted the strap. They were going grocery shopping, but first House wanted to run by the house that Wilson had seen for sale. He liked the idea of being close to the hospital and close to Wilson. Wilson had been a real pal, babysitting Percy whenever House had to work late. If House bought something in the neighborhood it would make it easier on both of them. House was a little shocked when Wilson had announced he was buying a house. But then, Wilson had been dating a mortgage broker and he got a great loan. It hadn't been a bad idea. The value of the house had shot up over the last two years and the extra room had given Percy a place to play when he came over.

House knew it was time to get out of the apartment, but old habits die hard. It had been easy to just go over and spend time at Wilson's when the two of them felt cramped. But he knew he couldn't spend the rest of his life in an apartment with his son sharing his bed. Wilson had been kind enough to keep Percy overnight whenever House had "company." But if House ever intended to have a relationship again, he needed a house.

House looked into the rear view mirror at Percy, "Okay, now look for a sign in the front yard..."

He knew that Percy had no clue what his father meant. But, in order to be helpful, Percy kept pointing at every house and yelling, "There Daddy! There."

House finally saw it. He stopped the car and looked. It was all on one floor except for a room over the three car garage. He got out, grabbed Percy out of the car seat and they went up to the windows to have a look. It was clear that no one was home. He could see a nice sized living room with plenty of room for a baby grand. He could also see a dining room. On the other side of the house the curtains were closed and he couldn't see inside.

"Let's look over the fence." He grabbed Percy's hand and walked over to the side. He looked over the fence and could see a nice, big back yard with trees. "I think we need to find out more about this one." He stopped at the mailbox which had 'Thomas' 1443 stenciled on the front. They went on their way, but House took note of the phone number.

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Cuddy was angry, "Would you tell your lawyer to get off his ass and release the gene sequence to the CDC! They're about ready to confiscate the patent in the name of national security. You better get on the ball.'

House frowned, "My lawyer claims it's the CDC, they haven't sent back a signed copy of the license. I'll call Maggie."

"You do that." She turned to leave, "How's Percy?"

"If I can just get him off the crack, he'll be fine."

"I haven't seen him around here in a few weeks." Cuddy picked up a fire engine that had migrated to the middle of House's office.

"Oh, we can cure that. I have to pick him up at 2:00 pm for his dental appointment. I could bring him by your office when we get back."

"Do that. I'd like to see him." she turned to leave, "And don't forget to call Maggie. I want those royalties for my budget. I'm sure you want Percy to start getting his royalty checks too."

Around 11:00 am House called Washington D.C. and was put through to Maggie. "Mags. It's Greg. What's up with the license? Cuddy is dying to make some money off of our deal and I just want phone sex."

She started laughing, "Greg...you crack me up. I have the signed license in my hot little hands. Now are you and your very rich son going to release the gene sequence once I send this to you?"

"The sequence license will be yours. It will be released upon receipt of the signed license." House smiled into the receiver.

She adopted a Marilyn Monroe voice, "Well, Dr. House, now that you'll be the guardian of a very rich little boy, maybe I'll have to come up to Princeton sometime and show you my virus profiles."

"I'm hot just thinking about it." He paused and turned serious, "Mags, why don't you come up?"

"Oh Greg, you know I would if I thought we could stay in a room one hour without fighting. But you know us. We may be in love, but we just can't tolerate being around each other. It's a shame, because you give the best orgasms on the planet."

House chuckled, "See, we can be around each other, as long as our mouths are engaged in other activities besides talking."

"You know I love you dearly, but we've tried each other on and it just didn't fit. But you should find someone. That little boy of yours is a doll. He deserves a mom."

"Like I haven't heard that one before."

"Well, I'll send this to your lawyer by Federal Express. You'll get it in the morning. Take care Greg."

"Ciao Maggie."

He hung up the phone. He realized he must be pretty lonely if he was trying to get Maggie to come up. She was right. He did have a passion for her, but within hours they always started fighting like cats and dogs.

House sat back and thought about his life over the last three years. It hadn't been what he had expected or easy. He had spent a long time trying to get his Vicodin use under control so that he could function and take care of Percy. He almost never drank, only when he was out at certain functions and even then, he had one or two. He also found that his personal life had tanked. He rarely got out and when he did, he frequently found himself checking up on his son. The only time he relaxed was when he knew that Wilson had Percy. Since Wilson was a doctor and loved Percy like a son, House knew he was safe.

But, House wasn't really complaining. There had been trade offs and even though he would have liked a little more freedom, his son made him laugh and made him feel; two things he had spent most of his life avoiding.

House took out the phone number and called about the house that was for sale.

"Hello?" A woman's voice answered.

"Hello, I'm Dr. House and I saw a sign up in the front yard that the house is up for sale. Is that your house?"

"Yes, I own it. Are you interested in buying a house or are you a realtor?"

He smiled to himself, she didn't trust realtors either, "I'm interested. Can you give me some information about it?"

"I bought it four years ago after my divorce. It's 3180 square feet, three bedrooms, two and a half baths, a family and living room, an enclosed conservatory on the back. A small sun room off the kitchen where I have an office. There's a full basement with a rec room and a laundry room. There's also a small one bedroom apartment over the garage that you could rent out or...whatever. I don't know if you looked, but the backyard is big, ideal for kids. Lots of grass and trees and a big patio for barbeques."

"How much?"

"$890,000, and I'm not coming down."

"You must have gotten a great divorce settlement." House quipped.

"I gave sixteen years of my life for that divorce settlement, I earned it. Especially when I found out that the last six of those years he spent giving our money away to his girlfriends." she sounded a little annoyed.

"Yeah, well, too much information."

"Here's the deal. I need to sell the house to pay for my last two years at Princeton. I'm getting my doctorate in Physics. But, I need a place to stay and finding decent housing for a student in Princeton is difficult. I was going to stay with my sister, but she and her husband were just transferred back to Philadelphia. The sale would be contingent on me being able to stay in the apartment rent free for two years. I would pay my utilities and I'd get one of the spaces in the garage plus the use of the washer and dryer, which I would leave for you. Talk it over with your wife, if she can live with that, then the house is $890,000, which is a good deal because it includes a price break for renting me the apartment."

House wasn't sure, "I don't have a wife, but I like my privacy."

"There's an outside entrance to the basement and the washer/dryer. You'd never see me. Believe me, I'm not that fond of the male sex right now. If I had it my way, you'd all be shipped off to an offshore island."

House chuckled, "You sound like a woman I used to know."

"She sounds brilliant. Well?"

House was quiet. He didn't like the idea of sharing the basement or garage, but then he thought it could be no worse than having neighbors in an apartment. "I'd like to see the place."

"The key is under the blue gnome in the back yard. The fence is unlocked. Take a look at it tomorrow and if you like it, those are my terms. The escrow can be as fast as you want, but no longer than 90 days. I need tuition for the winter semester."

"Okay, I'll drive by and see it tomorrow. Will you be home around noon?"

"No, I'm either in school or working, but go ahead and use the key to look around. You're a doctor at Memorial?"

"PPTH. Dr. Gregory House."

"If anything goes missing I know where to find you." She said it with laughter in her voice. "Let me give you my cell phone."

House got the details and then hung up. He wrote down, _776-3429, Thomas. _

The next day House went over to the house and took forty-five minutes to walk around. He realized that she had probably been watching those home shows because she had taken down anything personal like photos, awards, certificates, etc. The house still had personality, but he didn't see any sign of her life or family.

Wilson was with him and he was opening cupboards and checking plumbing as they went through the house. "It's all on one level except for the basement. They even have a chute for clothes to go down. You'd just have to carry them up...or train Percy to carry them up for you."

"I plan on putting one of those radio collars on his neck. If he doesn't do what I say, zap, he gets an electrical charge. I've heard it's the easiest way to get obedience out of a three year old."

"Look at this bedroom, it's huge and it's not even the master-bedroom. It would be great for Percy. Let's go look at the apartment over the garage."

They climbed the stairs and opened the door with the same key. "I wonder if she'll want the locks changed?" House said out-loud.

"It's a small bedroom, but it would make a nice little rental. So she's willing to live up here for two years after having all that room?" Wilson asked more to himself than to House.

House tilted his head, "We all do what we have to do."

"House, this is a great place and that's a great price. You should jump on this before someone else gets it. Hell, if you don't buy it, I might. It's bigger than mine and after she's gone I could rent out the apartment and make some money."

House blew out a deep breath. "I'm going to call her." He took out the phone and dialed the cell phone.

"Hello?"

"Is this Ms. Thomas?"

"Who is this?" she asked.

"Dr. House, Dr. Gregory House. I'm at your house looking at it."

She recognized him, "Oh! Dr. House! How do you like it?"

"I want to buy it."

Wilson's eyes opened wide and he grinned at House.

She chuckled with delight, "Great. We should meet and talk about terms."

"I'm paying cash. My son and I are going to go in halves on it. We can close escrow in a week."

"Don't you want to have it inspected?" She asked.

"Look, I want the house. It doesn't matter what the inspector says. It's a fair price and if I have to do some work, I'll do it. Let's meet and talk about the escrow."

"I have a night class, but I have an hour between 5:00 pm and 6:00 pm. Do you know the Frist Campus Center?"

"Yes."

"Meet me in front of it at 5:00 pm, okay?" she said.

"How will I know you?"

"I'm short and I always look tired. I'm wearing a t-shirt that has Shakespeare on it and says, "Prose before Hos."

House started laughing, "I like your sense of humor."

"Yeah, well most people don't. How will I recognize you?" she asked.

"I'll be wearing a three year old." He hung up.

Wilson gave him the thumbs up. "You're making a wise choice. This is a great house."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

House picked up Percy a little early and arrived at the Frisk Center around 4:50 pm. He took out a ball from the back of the SUV and they went up to the grassy area to play with it. He rolled it to Percy and Percy would squeal and run after it. This went on for quite awhile until around 5:05pm when he rolled the ball just a little too vigorously and Percy went running after it over a small ridge. House gave chase and as he came up over the rise, he saw a woman kneeling in front of Percy with the ball. He started forward and then stopped in his tracks when she looked up.

He was sure he was going to be ill. Shivers ran down his spine. She looked so much like Marie it was uncanny. There were differences, but she could have been her cousin if not her sister. When she smiled it reminded him of the smiles that Marie had given him. He had to sit down on the ground.

"Dr. House?" She asked.

It was only then that he realized she had a picture of Shakespeare on her chest. She had Percy in tow and sat down next to him.

"Your son is darling. He's going to love that house. It has a great back yard for kids. I always wanted a kid. My husband didn't." She looked at House and his face seemed to be drained. "Are you okay?"

His voice quivered, "You're Ms. Thomas?"

She smiled, there was something strange about him, "Thomas was my married name. I've gone back to my maiden name, Kathleen Callahan, Katie Callahan. Have we met before?"

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_**Dear Readers, This is the end of the story Breeder. Please leave a comment. I really hope you enjoyed this story. Gorblimey2**_


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